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THE  UNIVERSITY 
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SANTA  BARBARA 

PRESENTED  BY 


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A  SURVEY  OF  HISTORY 

FROM  THE  EARLIEST  KNOWN  RECORDS 

THROUGH  ALL  STAGES  OF  CIVILIZATION,  IN  ALL 

IMPORTANT  COUNTRIES,  DOWN  TO 

THE  PRESENT  TIME 

WITH  AN  INTRODUCTORY  ACCOUNT  OF  PREHISTORIC 

PEOPLES,  AND  WITH  CHARACTER  SKETCHES 

OF  THE  CHIEF  PERSONAGES  OF  EACH 

HISTORIC  EPOCH 


By  J.  N.  LARNED 

EDITOR  OF  THE  FAMOUS  "HISTORY  FOR  READT  REFERENCE,"  AND  AUTHOR  OF 

"A   HISTORY    OF   THE   UNITED   STATES   FOR   SECONDARY    SCHOOLS," 

"A   HISTORY   OF   ENGLAND   FOR  SCHOOLS,"    ETC. 

Illustrated  by  over  one  hundred  and  fifty  reproductions  of  famous  historical 
paintings  and  portraits  in  black  and  white,  and  colors. 

3Tn  Jibe  Volumes 

Volume  I 
Pages  1-278 


WORLD  SYNDICATE  COMPANY,  Inc., 

110-112  West  Fortieth  Street,  New  York  City 
1915 


COPYRIGHT  1905  AND  1907  BY  J.  N.  LARNED 

COPYRIGHT  I9I4  BY  S.  J.  LARNED 

ALL  RIGHTS  RESERVED 


Revised,  Enlarged  and  Up-to-date  Edition  specially  prepared  by 

C.  A.  NICHOLS  COMPANY,  Springfield,  Mass. 

(Publishers  of  Larned's  "History  for  Ready  Reference"  and  subscription 
editions  of  this  work) 

For  distribution  through  newspapers  by 

WORLD  SYNDICATE  COMPANY,  Inc.,  New  York 

who  are  the  Sole  Licensees  for  such  distribution 


PREFACE 

I  think  of  History  as  I  do  of  the  life  of  a  man, 
whose  days  are  but  an  epitome  of  its  years. 
They  instruct  and  interest  us  alike,  by  showing 
how  that  which  is  has  proceeded  from  that  which 
was,  and  how  things  that  had  been  went  into  the 
making  of  things  that  came  to  be.  The  pro- 
cess of  evolution  is  too  complex  for  our  under- 
standing of  more  than  some  very  small  part. 
We  can  trace  but  a  few  of  the  countless  influ- 
ences from  countless  sources  that  stream  into 
the  simplest  of  single  lives,  and  still  fewer  of 
the  innumerable  lines  from  cause  to  consequence 
that  run  through  them  all;  but  there  is  in 
every  life  a  certain  personal  configuration,  so  to 
speak,  which  gives  a  trend  to  all  the  forces  act- 
ing in  it,  turning  them,  more  or  less,  into  main 
channels,  mingling  their  currents  or  leading 
them  in  parallel  courses.  The  true  biographer 
is  one  who  recognizes  and  represents  that  trend 
in  the  life  he  depicts,  seeing  and  showing  what 
can  be  seen  and  shown  of  movements  in  it  from 
birth  to  death,  toward  the  out-come  of  charac- 
ter and  destiny  that  appear  at  the  end.  This 
is  done  very  finely  sometimes  in  no  more  than 

a  biographical  sketch. 

°     r  in 


iv  Preface 

So,  too,  it  is  in  History,  with  all  its  illimit- 
able complexities.  There  are  trends  in  it,  every- 
where and  always,  drawing  events  into  more  or 
less  definable  courses  or  movements,  through 
what  may  seem  to  be  a  trackless  tangle  of 
threaded  consequences  and  causes,  from  be- 
ginning to  end.  It  is  so  in  the  history  of  a 
nation,  in  the  history  of  a  people,  in  the  history 
of  a  period  of  time,  and  even  in  the  general  his- 
tory of  mankind  at  large.  In  the  latter  we  may 
not  always  be  able  to  trace  the  many  differ- 
ing movements  of  events  to  a  union  of  results,  or 
find  parallel  tendencies,  for  example,  in  Europe 
and  Cathay;  but  we  can,  after  all,  traverse 
most  of  general  history  along  courses  and  cur- 
rents that  are  as  visible  as  in  the  history  of  a 
single  state  or  in  the  life  of  a  single  man. 

To  do  so  is  to  obtain  the  real  teaching  of 
History, — to  find  its  meanings, — to  draw  its  les- 
sons,— to  enjoy  it  with  the  deepest  interest  it 
can  awaken  in  our  minds.  Not  to  do  so  is  either 
to  miss  everything  in  it  worth  reading  or  else  to 
get  no  more  than  the  entertainment  that  the 
gossip  of  a  newspaper  may  give.  Events  that  are 
dealt  with  like  unstrung  beads, — broken,  that  is, 
from  the  relations  that  thread  them,  and  thrown 
in  mere  handfuls  together, — may  have  some 
fragmentary,  anecdotal  interest  in  themselves, 
but  they  are  not  History.    Not  a  little,  however, 


Preface  v 

of  what  passes  for  History,  especially  in  abridg- 
ments and  compends,  is  given  to  readers  in 
that  granulated  form.  They  find  the  granula- 
tion so  often  in  works  of  the  smaller  scale  that 
they  may  think  it  goes  necessarily  with  abridged 
statements  of  historical  fact,  which  is  not  at 
all  true.  The  proper  abridgment  of  a  narrative 
of  history  is  neither  a  process  of  dessication,  nor 
one  of  crushing  and  packing,  but  a  work  of 
discriminating  selection  and  luminous  arrange- 
ment, applied  to  its  most  significant  incidents 
and  larger  facts.  This  is  sometimes  made  the 
means  of  bringing  the  prominences  of  history 
into  impressive  relief,  opening  large  views  in  it 
that  might  be  narrowed  or  obscured  by  much 
amplitude  of  details.  Some  remarkable  illustra- 
tions of  that  effect  are  seen  in  the  essays  of 
Macaulay.  It  is  notable,  too,  in  Bryce's  Holy 
Roman  Empire,  in  Bishop  Stubbs'  The  Early 
Plantagenets,  in  Dean  Church's  Beginning  of  the 
Middle  Ages,  in  Alexander  Johnston's  The  United 
States  (written  originally  for  the  Encyclopaedia 
Britannic  a),  and  in  many  other  books  of 
pregnant  brevity  that  might  be  named. 

The  method  of  historical  composition  which 
these  writers  have  illustrated  so  finely  is  one  that 
appeals  to  my  admiration,  and  to  my  judgment 
of  values  in  historical  work.  I  have  given  much 
thought  to  its  principles,  and  am  bold  enough, 


vi  Preface 

in  my  present  undertaking,  to  attempt  the 
largest  possible  application  of  them,  in  a  com- 
prehensive survey  of  the  whole  of  human  history, 
from  its  dawn  to  the  present  day.  The  result- 
ing exhibit  differs  essentially,  in  mode  and  char- 
acter, from  any  other  of  like  scope  that  I  know. 
The  aim  in  it  has  been  to  sift  out  almost  every- 
thing that  does  not  contribute  importantly  to 
a  clear  disclosure  of  the  main  movements  in 
events,  the  occasional  changes  of  direction  in 
such  movements,  the  marking  thereby  of  epochs 
and  periods  that  are  more  or  less  distinct,  and 
the  continuity  of  the  forces  that  act  in  them 
throughout.  If  I  have  succeeded  even  partially 
in  my  undertaking,  I  can  feel  that  I  have  not 
done  an  uncalled-for  work;  because  success  will 
mean  some  helpfulness  to  those  who  read  it  in 
comprehending  History  as  a  whole,  and  in  sub- 
sequently seeking  a  better  knowledge  of  its  parts 
with  a  livelier  interest  in  the  details. 

My  first  essay  toward  this  work  was  made  in 
a  general  sketch  of  European  history,  published 
in  my  History  for  Ready  Reference,  readers  of 
which  sketch  have  often  urged  me  to  extend  it, 
or  extend  the  plan  of  ,it,  as  I  have  now  done. 
In  parts  of  the  present  writing  I  have  made 
consiJerable  use  of  the  former  essay,  but  with 
extensive  recasting,  revision  and  enlargement, 
so  that  even  the  European  sections  of  the 
survey  are  essentially  new. 


Preface  vii 

The  story  of  the  life  of  mankind  is  divided 
naturally,  by  great  changes  of  circumstances, 
into  six  epochs;  and  I  have  grouped  for  each 
epoch  the  chief  actors  and  the  personages  most 
illustrious  in  its  history,  with  brief  character- 
izations, and  with  portraits  of  many.  This 
seems  to  be  preferable  to  the  scattering  of  such 
comments  and  illustrations  through  the  body  of 
the  narrative  text.  Each  group  is,  in  itself,  a 
significant  and  an  interesting  characterization 
of  the  epoch  to  which  it  belongs. 

What  is  shown  in  successive  periods,  of  events 
in  different  countries,  and  of  movements  and 
developments,  progressive  or  retrogressive,  in 
morals,  or  religion,  or  politics,  or  public  educa- 
tion, or  science,  or  literature,  or  arts,  or  trade, 
or  general  conditions  of  life,  may  be  linked 
together  and  made  continuous,  from  beginning 
to  end,  by  reference  to  the  Index  in  the  last 
volume,  which  is  carefully  synthesized  on  every 
important  subject  and  made  very  full. 

J.  N.  Larned. 


CONTENTS 

INTRODUCTION 
THE  PREHISTORIC  PEOPLES 

Historic  and  prehistoric  knowledge. — The  unrecorded  period  of 
human  life  in  different  countries. — The  paleolithic  stage  of 
primitive  culture. — Flintworking  and  other  arts  in  the  "Old 
Stone  Age." — The  geological  period  of  that  Age. — Glacial  and 
interglacial  times. — Intermixed  remains  of  arctic  and  tropical 
life. — The  neolithic  stage  of  culture,  or  "New  Stone  Age." — Re- 
mains of  its  arts. — Lake-dwellings  in  Europe. — The  finding  of 
metals. — Copper,  bronze  and  iron. — Genesis  of  variations  in  the 
human  species. — What  is  fundamental  in  the  racial  differences? — 
Classification  of  men  by  color. — Classification  by  language. — The 
Aryan  hypothesis. — Searchings  for  the  primitive  Aryan  home. 
— Classification  by  forms  of  the  human  skull. — The  "cephalic 
index." — Long-heads  and  broad-heads. — Blondes  and  brunettes. 
— Prevalence  of  certain  physical  features  in  different  parts  of  the 
world. — Various  hypotheses  relative  to  the  primitive  peopling  of 
Europe 1-18 

HISTORIC  EPOCH  I. 

EPOCH    OF    THE    EARLIEST    CIVILIZATIONS    AND 
KNOWN  EMPIRES 

CHIEF   CHARACTERS    OF   THE    EPOCH 

CHAPTER  I 

FROM  .'(THE    EARLIEST    KNOWN  RECORDS 
TO  THE   SUPPOSED  AGE  OF  ABRAHAM 

(Approximately  B.  C.  4700  to  2200) 
On  the  Nile:    How  Egypt  was  made  by  the  river. — How  its  age 
is    told    by  the   depth    of    the    soil. — Prehistoric    discoveries    of 
Professor  Petrie. — Beginning  of  alphabets  and   written  language. 

IX 


x  Contents 

— First  decipherment  of  the  hieroglyphics. — The  Rosetta  Stone. 
— Manetho's  list  of  the  pharaohs. — Its  recent  verification. — The 
builders  of  the  pyramids. — The  finding  of  the  tombs  of  the  first 
pharaohs  in  1898-9. — Seven  thousand  years  of  Egyptian  history 
now  disclosed. — Religious  ideas  of  the  Egyptians. — High  moral 
precepts  of  Ptah-hetep. — Invasion  and  conquest  of  Egypt  by  the 
Hyksos. — Supposed  time  of  the  visit  of  Abraham.  On  the 
Euphrates  and  the  Tigris:  Deep  burial  of  the  old  civilization  in  the 
Mesopotamian  valley. — Dissolution  of  its  clay-built  cities. — 
Wonderful  preservation  of  its  written  memorials  on  tablets  and 
cylinders  of  baked  clay,  in  the  heaps  of  their  ruin.- — Modern 
excavation. — The  cuneiform  writing  and  its  decipherment. — 
Astonishing  discoveries  in  recent  years. — American  work  at 
Nippur. — Historical  records  from  B.  C.  4500. — The  Babylonia 
of  Abraham's  time. — The  Sumerian  civilization. — Conjectured 
connection  of  early  Chinese  civilization  with  the  Sumerian. — Rise 
of  Babylon  to  supremacy. — Hammurabi,  founder  of  the  Babylo- 
nian Empire. — His  identification  with  the  Amraphel  of  the  Bible. 
— Discovery  of  his  code  of  laws. — The  Babylonian  legend  of  the 
deluge. — Time  of  the  migration  of  Abraham  from  Babylonia  to 
Canaan.  Elsewhere:  Glimpses  of  a  rising  civilization  in  and  on 
the  yEgean  Sea. — The  Aryan  peoples  of  India  and  Iran. — Earliest 
Chinese  records 33—61 


CHAPTER  II  > 

FROM  THE  SUPPOSED  AGE  OF  ABRAHAM 
TO  THE  DEATH  OF  DAVID 

(Approximately,  B.  C.  2200  to  960) 
Egypt:  The  rule  of  the  Hyksos. — Their  expulsion. — Probability 
of  the  story  of  Joseph. — Amenhotep,  the  sun-worshiper. — Discovery 
of  his  foreign  correspondence  at  Tel-el-Amarna. — Ramses  II.,  the 
pharaoh  who  oppressed  the  Israelites.  Babylonia:  Development 
of  schools,  libraries,  arts,  literature,  trade. — Rule  of  the  Kassites. 
— The  rise  of  Assyria.  Canaan  and  Aramea:  The  exodus  of 
Israel  from  Egypt. — Babylonian  influence  in  Mosaic  institutions. 
— The  Israelite  conquest  of  Canaan. — The  period  of  the  Judges. 
— Wars  with  the  Philistines. — The  founding  of  the  Hebrew  mon- 
archy.— Saul. — David. — David's  conquests. — His  decline  in  charac- 
ter.— Strife  for  the  succession  to  David's  crown. — Triumph  of 
Solomon.  The  Phoenicians:  Former  overestimate  of  the  civilizing 
influence  of  the  Phoenicians. — They  were  not  the  inventors  of  the 
alphabet.  Greek  Regions:  Early  civilization  in  and  on  the 
iEgean. — Knowledge  from  the  work  of  excavation. — Light  on  the 


Contents  xi 

Homeric  poems. — Tyrians  and  Mycenae. — Astonishing  discoveries 
in  Crete. — The  labyrinth  of  King  Minos. — Cretan  writing. — Ap- 
parent origin  of  the  Phoenician  alphabet. — The  Cretan  age. — The 
Mycenaean  age. — Divisions  of  the  Hellenic  peoples. — Movement 
of  the  Dorians. — Ionian  preservation  of  the  early  culture.  Else- 
where: Probable  state  of  other  parts  of  Europe. — The  lake-dwell- 
ers.— Stonehenge. — Lydia. — Phrygia. — The  Trojans. — The  Aryas. 
—The  Vedic  hymns.— The  Avesta 62-105 

CHAPTER  III 

FROM  THE  DEATH  OF  DAVID  TO  THE 

ADVENT  OF  CYRUS 

(Approximately,  B.  C.  960  to  558) 
The  Period:  Transfer  of  leadership  in  civilization  to  Aryan 
races.  The  Hebrew  Kingdoms,  and  Assyria  and  Babylonia:  Char- 
acter and  reign  of  Solomon. — Division  of  the  monarchy. — The 
kingdoms  of  Israel  and  Judah. — Introduction  of  idolatry. — The 
prophets  Elijah  and  Elisha. — Assyrian  conquests. — Transplanta- 
tion of  conquered  peoples. — Overthrow  of  the  kingdom  of  Israel. — 
No  mystery  concerning  the  "lost  ten  tribes." — Resistance  of 
Jerusalem  to  Sennacherib. — The  prophet  Isaiah. — Destruction  of 
Babylon.  Egypt:  The  Assyrian  conquest. — Independence  re- 
covered.— Exploring  expedition  round  Africa. — The  first  Suez 
canal.  Assyria,  Media,  Chaldean  Babylonia  and  the  Kingdom  of 
Judah:  Assur-bani-pal  (Sardanapalus). — His  great  library  at 
Nineveh. — Last  years  of  the  Assyrian  empire.— Destruction  of 
Nineveh. — Secrets  of  history  preserved  in  its  ruins. — Nebuchad- 
nezzar.— His  destruction  of  Jerusalem. — Babylonian  exile  of  the 
Jewish  people. — End  of  the  kingdom  of  David. — Magnificence  of 
the  new  Babylon.  In  the  Lands  of  the  Greeks:  A  new  era  of  culture 
opened  by  the  Greeks. — Evolution  of  the  first  democracies. — The 
Ionian  genius. — The  Homeric  epics. — The  two  great  literatures  of 
antiquity,  Hebrew  and  Greek. — Political  development  of  Athens. 
The  Latin  Region:  Beginnings  of  Rome. — The  unions  that  gave 
birth  to  it. — Origin  of  patricians  and  plebeians.  Phoenicians  and 
Carthaginians:  The  founding  of  Carthage. — Settlements  in  Spain. 
— Phoenician  manufactures.  India:  Development  of  Brahman- 
ism. — Creation  of  caste.     China:    General  disorder.     .      .  106-149 

CHAPTER  IV 

FROM  THE  ADVENT  OF  CYRUS  TO  THE 
AGE  OF  XERXES 

(B.  C.  558  to  480) 
The  Period:    Its  two  notable  marks. — Trial  of  racial  strength 


xii  Contents 

and  character  between  Asiatic  and  European  branches  of  the 
Aryan-tongued  peoples. — Religious  movements  in  the  Asiatic  world. 
Ancient  Persia:  The  nationality  of  Cyrus  the  Great,  a  problem. 
— Primitive  Persia  and  the  Persians. — Xenophon's  account  of  Per- 
sian education  of  the  young. — The  Avesta. — Zoroaster.  Early 
Religious  Reformations  in  the  East:  Zoroaster's  reform  of  the  prim- 
itive religion  of  the  Aryas. — Gotama,  the  Buddha,  and  Buddhism. 
— Teachings  of  Lao-tsze  and  Confucius.  The  Persian  Empire: 
Overthrow  of  the  Median  empire  by  Cyrus. — His  conquest  of 
Lydia.— Crcesus,  his  wealth  and  his  downfall. — Subjugation  of 
Asia  Minor. — Submission  of  Babylon. — Restoration  of  captive 
Jews  to  Jerusalem  by  Cyms. — The  empire  left  by  Cyrus. — Conquest 
of  Egypt  by  Cambyses. — Reorganization  of  the  empire  by  Darius. 
— His  invasion  of  Europe. — His  pursuit  of  the  Scythians  beyond 
the  Danube. — Submission  of  Thrace  and  Macedonia  to  the  Per- 
sian.— Peril  of  the  Greek  states.  The  Greeks:  Brief  experience  of 
tyranny  at  Athens. — Pisistratus  and  his  sons. — The  democratic 
constitution  of  Cleisthenes.  Persian  Invasions  of  Greece:  Athens 
sends  help  against  Persia  to  Ionian  cities  in  Asia  Minor. — Wrath 
of  King  Darius. — His  great  expedition  sent  into  Greece. — Its 
defeat  at  Marathon. — Second  Persian  invasion  by  Xerxes. — 
Leonidas  and  his  Spartans  at  Thermopylae. —  Athens  in  ruins. — 
Destruction  of  the  Persian  fleet  at  Salamis. — Disastrous  end  of  the 
Persian  invasion.  The  Romans:  The  Romans  under  their  kings. 
— Aristocratic  constitution  of  the  early  Roman  Republic. — 
Formation  of  the  democratic  commonwealth 150-178 


HISTORIC  EPOCH  II. 

EPOCH  OF  THE  GREEKS  AND  ROMANS 

CHIEF   CHARACTERS    OF   THE    EPOCH 

CHAPTER  V 

FROM  THE  AGE  OF  XERXES  TO  THE  AGE 
OF  HANNIBAL 

(B.  C.  480  to  200) 
The  Greeks:  The  rebuilding  of  Athens. — The  Confederacy 
of  Delos. — Despotic  use  of  Athenian  power. — The  Age  of  Pericles 
— The  Peloponnesian  war. — Triumph  of  the  enemies  of  Athens. 
— Decay  of  the  Persian  empire. — Retreat  of  the  Ten  Thousand. 
— Breaking  of  the  Spartan  yoke  by  Thebes. — Subjugation  of 
Greece  by  Philip  of  Macedon.    The  Macedonian  Empire:   Over- 


Contents  xiii 

throw  of  the  Persian  empire  by  Alexander. — Great  results  from 
his  conquests. — Division  of  his  dominions  after  his  death. — The 
Syrian  monarchy  of  Seleucus. — The  new  Egyptian  kingdom  of  the 
Ptolemies. — Degeneracy  of  the  Greeks  at  home. — Their  activity 
and  influence  in  the  field  of  the  Macedonian  conquests. — Alexandria. 
— The  Jews  of  the  "diaspora."  India:  The  kingdom  of  Magadha. 
— Asoka. — Establishment  of  Buddhism. — Evolution  of  Hinduism. 
The  Roman  Republic:  Roman  subjugation  of  all  Italy. — War 
with  Pyrrhus. — The  Punic  wars. — Hannibal  in  Italy. — Fall  of 
Carthage 208-244 

CHAPTER  VI 

FROM    THE    AGE    OF   HANNIBAL   TO   THE 

DEATH  OF  CESAR 

(B.  C.  200  to  44) 

Eastward  conquests  of  Rome:  Roman  subjugation  of  Greece. — 
Defeat  of  the  Syrian  king  Antiochus.  The  Syrian  monarchy  and 
the  Jews:  Oppression  of  the  Jews. — Revolt  of  the  Maccabees. — 
Rise  of  the  Asmonean  monarchy.  The  Zenith  and  the  Decline 
of  the  Roman  Republic:  Evil  effects  of  the  Roman  conquests  on 
the  character  of  the  Republic. — Rise  of  a  new  aristocracy. — Mis- 
chievous features  of  the  democratic  system. — Increasing  use  of 
slave  labor. — Aristocratic  monopoly  of  public  lands. — Agrarian 
agitations. — Fate  of  the  Gracchi. — The  Jugurthine  War. — De- 
struction of  Carthage. — Popularity  and  power  of  Marius,  the 
successful  soldier. — Optimates  and  Populares. — The  Social  War. 
— Rivalry  of  Marius  and  Sulla. — Civil  War. — Triumph  of  Sulla. 
— His  dictatorship  and  retirement. — Intrigues  and  struggles  in  the 
next  generation. — The  great  game  played  by  Pompey,  Crassus, 
and  Caesar. — Pompey  in  the  East. — His  suppression  of  the  Syrian 
and  Asmonean  monarchies. — Caesar's  conquest  of  Gaul. — Civil 
war  between  partisans  of  Caesar  and  Pompey. — Triumph  of 
Caesar. — His  supremacy. — His  assassination. — His  great  place  in 
history.     China:    The  Han  dynasty 245-278 

CHAPTER  VII 

FROM    THE    DEATH    OF    CESAR    TO    THE 
DEATH  OF  ALARIC 

(B.  C.  44  to  A.  D.  410) 

Formation  of  the  Roman  Empire:  Aspirants  for  the  succession 
to  Caesar's  power. — The  Second  Triumvirate. — Defeat  and  death 
of  Caesar's  assassins. — Division  of  the  Empire. — Mark  Antony  in 


xiv  Contents 

Egypt. — His  overthrow  and  death. — Supremacy  of  Octavius,  as 
Imperator  and  Augustus. — His  organization  of  the  Empire.  Birth 
of  Jesus  and  rise  of  Christianity:  Judea  at  the  time  of  the  birth 
of  Jesus. — The  kingdom  of  Herod. — Roman  government  when 
Jesus  began  his  teaching. — Jewish  institutions. — The  Great  San- 
hedrim— Pharisees,  Sadducees,  Scribes. — Their  hostility  to  Jesus 
and  proceedings  against  Him. — The  spreading  of  belief  in  Him 
after  His  death.  The  Roman  Empire  from  Augustus  to  Diocletian: 
The  first  emperors. — Nero,  the  madman. — Vespasian. — The  great 
Jewish  revolt. — Trajan's  conquests  abandoned  by  Hadrian. — The 
Antonine  emperors. — Marcus  Aurelius. — Happy  state  of  the  world. 
— The  evil  conditions  that  followed.  The  new  enemies  of  Rome: 
A  new  Persian  monarchy. — Impending  avalanche  of  northern 
barbarians. — Franks,  Alemanni,  Suevi,  Goths— Beginning  _  of 
Gothic  invasions.  The  Roman  Empire  from  Diocletian  to  Arcadius: 
Reorganization  and  division  of  the  Empire. — Spread  of  Chris- 
tianity.— Civil  war,  and  triumph  of  Constantine. — The  Christian 
church  corrupted  by  imperial  patronage. — Julian  and  the  pagan 
revival. — Admission  of  Visigoths  to  the  Empire. — Beginning  of 
their  ravages. — Final  division  of  the  Empire. — Decay  in  the  wrest. 
— Alaric's  attacks  upon  Rome. — The  city  taken  and  plundered. 
— Frontier  defenses  broken. — The  barbarians  swarming  in. 
China:     Introduction  of  Buddhism 279-326 

HISTORIC  EPOCH  III. 

EPOCH  OF  THE  NEW  NATIONS,  KNOWN  AS  THE 

MIDDLE  AGES. 

CHIEF  CHARACTERS  OF  THE  EPOCH 

CHAPTER  VIII 
FROM  THE  DEATH  OF  ALARIC  TO  THE  AD- 
VENT OF  CHARLEMAGNE 

(A.  D.  410  to  768) 
The  period  of  the  "dark  ages." — Differing  effects  of  the  barbaric 
conquest.  Last  years  of  the  Roman  'empire  in  the  west:  Attila,  the 
Hun. — The  Vandals  in  Rome.— End  of  the  western  line  of  emperors. 
Ostrogothic  kingdom  of  Theodoric:  Its  brevity. — Hostility^  of  the 
church.  The  Roman  empire  in  the  east:  Reign  of  Justinian. — 
Belisarius. — Narses. — Recovery  of  Rome  and  Italy.  Britain,  and 
its  conquest  by  German  tribes:  Roman  occupation  and  abandon- 
ment of  the  island. — Pict,  Scot  and  Saxon  assailants— Conquest 
by  Jutes,   Saxons  and  Engles. — Extinction  of  Christianity.   Spread 


Contents  xv 

and  influence  of  Monasticism:  Irish  schools  and  missions. — 
Christian  missionaries  in  England.  The  kingdom  of  the  Franks: 
Conquests  of  Clovis. — The  Merovingian  dynasty. — Austrasia  and 
Neustria. — Rise  of  the  mayors  of  the  palace. — The  ancestry  of 
Charlemagne.  Mohammed,  and  the  conquests  of  Islam:  The  Arabian 
prophet  and  his  religion. — First  century  of  Mohammedan  con- 
quests.— The  Caliphs.  China  and  its  neighbors:  Taitsong  the 
Great.  The  Roman  empire  in  the  east:  Its  struggle  with  Persians, 
Avars  and  Arabs. — Final  separation  of  Rome.  Italy  and  Rome: 
Lombard  conquest  of  Italy. — How  the  bishops  of  Rome  acquired 
authority  and  power. — Their  alliance  with  the  chiefs  of  the 
Franks 35^-397 

CHAPTER  IX 

FROM    THE    ADVENT    OF    CHARLEMAGNE 

TO  THE   DEATH  OF  HILDEBRAND 

(A.  D.  768  to  1085) 

Beginning  of  reconstructive  processes.  Charlemagne  and  his 
empire:  His  ~  imperial  coronation. — His  conquests.  The  North- 
men: What  drove  them  to  sea. — Forays  of  the  Vikings. — Danes 
in  England. — King  Alfred's  struggle  with  them. — Later  Danish 
conquest  of  England. — Rollo's  settlement  in  Normandy. — Norse 
voyages  to  America. — Beginnings  of  the  Russian  empire.  Slavonic 
peoples:  Their  homes.  Feudalism  in  western  Europe:  As  a  land 
system. — As  a  political  system. — Disintegrating  effects. — Med- 
iaeval cities.  Dissolution  of  the  Carolingian  empire:  The  West 
Frank  kingdom  becoming  France. — Hugh  Capet. — The  East  Frank 
kingdom,  or  Germany. — Creation  of  the  Germanic-Roman  or 
Holy  Roman  empire. — Evil  effects  in  Germany.  The  empire  and 
the  papacy:  Anarchy  at  Rome. — Empire  and  papacy  opposed  in 
Italy. — Rise  of  Italian  city-republics. — Henry  IV.  and  Pope  Greg- 
ory VII.  (Hildebrand). — The  "war  of  investitures." — Henry  IV. 
at  Canossa. — Normans  in  southern  Italy. — Their  treatment  of 
Rome.  Norman  conquest  of  England:  William  of  Normandy's 
claim  to  the  English  crown. — His  subjugation  of  the  English 
people. — Effects  of  the  conquest.  The  Chinese  empire  and  Japan: 
Khitans  and  Kins 398-433 

CHAPTER  X 

FROM      THE      DEATH      OF     HILDEBRAND 

TO    THE  EXILE  OF  DANTE 

(A.  D.  1085  to  1302) 
Importance   of   the   period.     The  Crusades:    Provoked  by   the 


xvi  Contents 

Seldjuk  Turks. — Their  origin. — Their  conquests. — The  first  three 
crusades. — Sultan  Saladin. — Alexius  Comnenus  and  the  crusaders. 
— Effects  of  the  crusades.  Learning  and  Literature:  Rise  of 
universities  and  common  schools. — Growth  of  literature. — Chansons 
de  geste. — Heroic  epics  and  romances. — Troubadours  and  trou- 
veurs. — The  Arthurian  legends. — Icelandic  sagas.  Knighthood 
and  chivalry:  The  pride  of  the  man  on  horseback. — Good  and 
evil  influences.  Religion  and  the  church:  Mendicant  and  military 
religious  orders. — Increasing  clerical  influence.  The  Holy  Roman 
empire:  The  Hohenstaufen  emperors  and  the  popes.— Factions  of 
the  time. — Welfs  and  Waiblingens. — Guelfs  and  Ghibelines. — 
Frederick  Barborossa. — Pope  Innocent  III. — Frederick  II.  Ger- 
many and  the  empire:  Weakening  of  the  German  monarchy. — 
Petty  principalities. — Free  cities. — The  Hanseatic  League. — Rise 
of  the  house  of  Austria.  Venice,  Genoa,  Pisa,  Florence:  Venetian 
dominion  and  trade. — Wars. — Government. — Turbulent  factions  in 
Florence. — Exile  of  Dante. — Radical  democracy.  The  kingdom  of 
France:  Its  growth. — Recovery  of  Normandy  and  Anjou. — Philip 
Augustus. — Louis  IX.  (Saint  Louis). — Philip  IV.  England:  Under 
the  Norman  kings. — The  Plantagenets. — Henry  II.  and  his  good 
work. — His  quarrel  with  Becket. — King  John  and  Magna  Carta. 
— Simon  de  Montfort. — The  Barons'  War. — Edward  I.  and  his 
"model  parliament."  Spain:  Rise  of  Christian  kingdoms. — Decay 
of  the  Moorish  power. — Early  free  institutions  and  their  loss. 
China  and  the  Mongols:  Conquests  of  Genghis  Khan  and  his  suc- 
cessors.— The  empire  of  Kublai  Khan. — Marco  Polo.     .     434-512 

CHAPTER  XI 

FROM  THE  EXILE  OF  DANTE  TO  THE  AD- 
VENT OF  GUTENBERG, 

(A.  D.  1302  to  1454) 

Afflictions  of  the  fourteenth  century. — War,  pestilence  and  de- 
moralizations. The  "Hundred  Years  War"  waged  by  the  English  in 
France:  Its  beginning  by  Edward  III. — The  Black  Prince. — 
Battles  of  Crecy  and  Poitiers. — Wretched  state  of  France. — The 
"Black  Death"  in  England. — Social  changes  produced. — Demo- 
cratic ideas  afloat. — Wiclif  and  the  Lollards. — Chaucer. — Begin- 
nings of  a  great  English  literature. — Renewal  of  the  war  by 
Henry  V. — Battle  of  Agincourt. — France  half  conquered. — Ap- 
pearance of  Joan  of  Arc. — Her  wonderful  influence. — Her  death  at 
the  stake. — Final  expulsion  of  the  English  from  France. — "Wars 
of  the  Roses"  in  England.  Germany  and  the  Holy  Roman  empire: 
The  "Golden  Bull"  of  Charles  IV. — Reformation  of  Huss  in  Bo- 
hemia.— The  Hussitewars.    Italy  and  the  church:    The  "  Babylonish 


Contents  xvii 

captivity"  and  the  "great  schism." — Anarchy  in  Rome. — Rienzi's 
revolution. — The  "Sicilian  vespers." — Long  strife  over  Naples. — 
Rise  of  the  despots  in  northern  Italy. — Florence  yielding  to  the 
Medici.  The  Swiss  Confederacy:  Its  origin. — Doubtful  legend  of 
Tell.  The  Ottoman  Turks:  Their  early  career. — Their  invasion 
of  Europe. — Struggles  of  the  eastern  empire  and  the  Balkan  peoples 
with  them. — Their  capture  of  Constantinople.  The  Mongols 
again:  Horrible  career  of  Timour.  China:  Overthrow  of  the 
Mongol  dynasty.     Japan:     The  Ashikagas.       .      .      .      513-574 

CHAPTER  XII 

THE   HISTORICAL    WORLD    AT    THE    END 
OF   THE  MIDDLE  AGES 

(The  Fifteenth  Century) 

The  transition  from  Mediseval  to  Modern. — The  known  world 
in  the  first  half  of  the  fifteenth  century.  Medieeval  Scholasticism: 
The  intellectual  bar  to  advancement  in  knowledge. — Logic  the 
whole  of  science. — Paralyzing  deference  to  authority.  Medieeval 
Education:  The  Scholastic  training  of  mind  compared  with  that  of 
the  classical  education. — The  finding  of  Nature  and  birth  of  modern 
science. — Italy  and  the  "new  learning." — Common  schools  in 
the  Middle  Ages. — Primary  and  secondary  schools. — Books  and 
studies.  The  early  Reading  Public:  Increasing  book-trade  before 
printing  was  invented.  Medieeval  Architecture:  Signification  of 
the  great  cathedrals. — Clerical  architects. — Public  enterprise  in 
cathedral-building. — How  the  cost  was  paid.  Medieeval  Dwell- 
ings and  Furniture:  Invention  of  chimneys. — Glass  windows. — 
Development  of  home  life.— Impossibility  of  it  in  fortified  habi- 
tations.— Life  in  castles  and  walled  towns. — English  manors  and 
manor-houses. — Peasants'  homes.  Medieeval  Serfdom:  Status  of 
the  serf  or  villein.— His  tenure  of  land. — Substitution  of  a  money- 
rental  for  labor  claims.  Town-life  in  the  Middle  Ages:  Civic 
feeling  in  the  mediseval  town. — Responsibilities  and  duties  of  the 
citizen. — A  town  described.  Medieeval  Gilds:  Gild  monopolies. — 
Classes  of  the  gilds.  Monasteries  and  Monks:  Their  early 
influence. — Monastic  colonization. — What  the  early  monks  did 
and  were. — The  monasteries  as  democratic  institutions. — Why  they 
fell.  The  destruction  of  Feudalism:  Feudalism  and  medievalism 
bound  together. — The    undermining    agencies.        .      .      575-622 


This  marks  the  division  between  the  Ancient 
and  Mediaeval  Period  and  the  Modern  Period 


xviii  Contents 

HISTORIC  EPOCH  IV. 

EPOCH    OF    MODERNIZING    EXPANSIONS    CALLED 
THE  RENAISSANCE. 

CHIEF  CHARACTERS  OF  THE  EPOCH 

CHAPTER  XIII 

FROM  THE  ADVENT  OF  GUTENBERG  TO 
THE  ADVENT  OF  LUTHER 

(A.  D.  1454  to  15 17) 
The  transition  from  mediaeval  to  modern  conditions. — Expan- 
sion, liberation,  re-wakening. — Invention  of  printing  and  its  effects. 
— Revival  of  learning. — Geographical  exploration  and  discovery. — 
Undertakings  of  Prince  Henry  of  Portugal. — Voyages  of  Columbus 
and  Vasco  da  Gama.  State  of  Europe  when  America  was  discovered. 
France:  Louis  XL  and  Charles  the  Bold. — Consolidation  of  the 
kingdom.  Italy:  Naples,  Milan,  Florence. — The  Medicean  des- 
potism at  Florence. — Savonarola  and  his  fate. — Invasion  of  Italy 
by  Charles  VIII.  of  France. — Its  effects  on  France.  Germany  and 
the  Empire:  The  marriage  unions  of  Austrian,  Burgundian  and 
Spanish  families. — Their  immense  effects.  England:  Absolute 
monarchy  resulting  from  civil  wars. — Establishment  of  the  Tudor 
dynasty.  Discovery  of  America:  Voyages  of  Columbus,  Cabot, 
and  Vespucius. — Papal  grants  to  Spain  and  Portugal. — The  naming 
of  America. — Effects  of  the  discovery,  and  of  the  opening  of  the 
sea-route  to  India. — The  Portuguese  in  the  east.  France  and 
Italy:  Italian  wars  of  Louis  XII.  Spanish  acquisition  of  Naples. 
— The  league  against  Venice. — Public  disapproval  of  some 
popes.  651-688 

CHAPTER  XIV 

FROM  THE;  ADVENT  OF   LUTHER  TO   THE 

ABDICATION  OF  THE  EMPEROR 

CHARLES  V. 

(A.  D.  15 17  to  1556) 

The  Protestant  Reformation:     How  Europe   had  been   prepared 
to  listen  to  Luther. — His  ninety-five  theses  against  the  papal  sale 


Contents  xix 

of  indulgences. — Situation  in  Germany  following  the  Austro-Spanish 
marriage. — The  emperor  Charles  V. — His  opposition  to  the  Re- 
formation.— His  suppression  of  freedom  in  Spain. — His  persecuting 
tyranny  in  the  Netherlands. — His  Italian  wars  with  Francis  I.  of 
France. — Capture  and  sack  of  Rome  by  the  imperial  army  under 
constable  Bourbon. — Peasant  war  in  Germany. — Progress  of  the 
Lutheran  reformation. — The  emperor's  undertaking  to  repress  it 
by  force. — Religious  war,  followed  by  the  Peace  of  Augsburg. — 
Abdication  of  Charles  V. — Zwingli,  and  the  Swiss  reformation. — 
Persecution  of  reformers  in  France. — Calvin  at  Geneva. — Henry 
VIII.  of  England. — Base  motive  of  his  quarrel  with  the  papacy. 
— Separation  of  the  English  church  from  the  Roman. — Reform- 
ation in  England  under  Edward  VI. — Restoration  of  Catholicism 
under  Mary  Tudor. — Return  of  Protestantism  under  Elizabeth. 
— Reformation  in  Scotland  and  Scandinavia. — Gustavus  Vasa. — 
The  Council  of  Trent.  The  Spaniards  in  America:  Cortes  in 
Mexico. — Pizarro  in  Peru. — Spanish  colonial  policy. — Aztec, 
Maya   and  Inca  civilizations .  689-750 


CHAPTER  XV 

FROM  THE  ABDICATION  OF  THE  EMPEROR 

CHARLES  V.  TO  THE  ASSASSINATION 

OF  HENRY  IV.,   OF  FRANCE 


(A.  D.  1556  to  1610) 
Catholic  reaction:  Intrusion  of  mercenary  and  political  mo- 
tives in  the  Reformation  movement. — Protestant  divisions. — 
Purification  of  the  papacy. — Organization  of  the  Society  of 
Jesus. — Malignant  power  of  Philip  II.  of  Spain.  Spain  and  the 
Netherlands:  The  ruining  of  Spain. — Philip's  despotism  in  the 
Netherlands. — Alva  and  his  "Council  of  Blood." — FateofEgmont 
and  Horn. — The  revolt. — Success  of  the  "sea-beggars." — Heroic 
struggle  of  the  Dutch  for  freedom. — Philip's  assassination  of  its 
great  leader,  William  the  Silent. — Eastern  trade  won  by  the 
Dutch  and  English.  Religious  Wars  in  France:  The  contest- 
ants for  power. — The  Guises. — Catherine  de'  Medici. — The  Hu- 
guenots as  a  party. — The  Bourbons  of  Navarre. — Admiral  Coligny. 
— Meddling  of  Philip  of  Spain. — The  massacre  of  St.  Barthol- 
omew's Day. — Accession  of  Henry  of  Navarre  to  the  throne.— His 
abjuration  of  Protestantism. — His  Edict  of  Nantes.  Germany: 
Events  leading  to  the  "Thirty  Years  War."  England:  Queen 
Elizabeth  and  Mary,  Queen  of  Scots. — Execution  of  Mary. — The 


xx  Contents 

Spanish  armada. — Half-piratical  warfare  with  Spain. — The  Eliz- 
abethan age.  America:  Undertakings  of  the  French. — Hawkin's 
slave-trading  and  Drake's  piracies. — Projects  of  Sir  Humphrey 
Gilbert. — Raleigh's  colonies. — The  Virginia  Company. — The  James- 
town colony  and  Captain  John  Smith. — French  and  Dutch  settle- 
ments. China  and  Japan:  Opening  of  Christian  missions. — 
Reconstruction  of  Japan  by  Ieyasu. — Suppression  of  Christianity. 
India:    Founding  of  the  Moghul  empire 751-806 


HISTORIC  EPOCH  V. 

EPOCH  OF  POLITICAL  REVOLUTIONS 

CHIEF  CHARACTERS  OF  THE  EPOCH 

CHAPTER  XVI 

FROM  THE  ASSASSINATION  OF  HENRY   IV. 
TO  THE  DEATH  OF  CROMWELL 


(l6lO   TO    1658) 

England  and  Scotland:  Union  of  the  crowns  under  the  Stuarts. 
— Offensiveness  of  James  I.  to  English  feeling. — Weakening  of 
loyalty. — Charles  I. — His  falsity  of  nature.- — His  attempts  at  abso- 
lutism.— The  Long  Parliament  and  its  work. — Civil  war. — Rise 
of  Cromwell. — Defeat,  trial,  and  execution  of  the  king. — The 
Commonwealth. — The  Protectorate  of  Cromwell. — Restoration 
of  the  Stuart  monarchy.  France:  Aggrandizement  under  Richelieu. 
— Ministry  of  Mazarin. — The  Fronde.  Germany:  The  Thirty 
Years  War. — Wallenstein. — Gustavus  Adolphus. — Destructiveness 
and  results  of  the  war.  The  Dutch  Netherlands:  Acknowledg- 
ment of  their  independence. — Barneveld  and  Prince  Maurice. — 
Domination  of  Holland. — The  Dutch  maritime  career.  Russia: 
Ivan  the  Terrible  Poland:  The  "liberum  veto."  The  Turks: 
Waning  of  the  crescent.  China:  The  Manchu  conquest.  Japan: 
The  period  of  isolation.  America:  Overthrow  of  the  London  Com- 
pany in  Virginia. — Founding  of  Maryland. — Colonizing  of  New 
England. — Plymouth. — Massachusetts  Bay. — Connecticut. — Rhode 
Island. — New  Haven.— Independent  spirit  in  New  England. — 
Cavaliers  in  Virginia. — Troubles  in  Maryland. — The  English  in 
the  West  Indies. — Dutch  and  French  settlements.       .      837-894 


Contents  xxi 

CHAPTER  XVII 

FROM  THE  DEATH  OF  CROMWELL  TO  THE 
DEATH  OF  LOUIS  XIV.,  OF  FRANCE 

(1658    TO    1715) 

England:  Restored  monarchy. — Ignoble  reign  of  Charles  II- 
— Protestant  hostility  to  James  II. — Monmouth's  rebellion. — 
Revolution  of  1688. — Reign  of  William  of  Orange  and  Mary. — 
Reign  of  Queen  Anne. — Rise  of  ministerial  government. — Literature 
of  the  reign. — National  union  of  England  and  Scotland.  The 
Dutch  Netherlands:  William  of  Orange,  stadtholder. — His  organiza- 
tion of  resistance  to  Louis  XIV.  France:  Reign  of  Louis  XIV. — 
His  perfidious  conquests  and  wanton  aggressions. — His  revocation 
of  the  Edict  of  Nantes. — Leagues  formed  against  him  by  William 
of  Orange. — War  of  the  Spanish  Succession. — State  of  France  as  left 
by  Louis  XIV.  Germany:  Depressed  condition  of  the  petty  states. 
— Rise  of  Prussia  to  the  rank  of  a  kingdom.  Russia:  Advent  of  Peter 
the  Great.  Sweden:  Extraordinary  career  of  Charles  XII.  Italy: 
The  duke  of  Savoy  made  king  of  Sardinia.  America:  Founding 
of  the  Carolinas. — English  conquest  of  New  Netherland. — Penn 
and  Pennsylvania. — Political  character  of  the  English  colonies. 
— Design  against  them  by  the  restored  English  monarchy. — 
The  Massachusetts  charter  annulled. — Rule  of  Andros. — Effects 
of  the  English  revolution. — The  Franco-English  wars  in  America. 
— Growth  of  antagonism  between  the  colonies  and  the  home  gov- 
ernment. India:  First  footing  of  the  English  East  India  Com- 
pany obtained.  China:     Reign  of  Kanghi 895-953 

CHAPTER  XVIII 

FROM  THE  DEATH  OF  LOUIS  XIV.  TO  THE 
ADVENT  OF  WASHINGTON  IN  THE 
AMERICAN  REVOLUTION 

(l7IS    TO    1775) 

Momentous  consequences  from  the  wars  of  the  period.  Great 
Britain:  The  first  Hanoverian  kings. — Walpole. — Evolution  of 
premier  and  cabinet. — The  Mississippi  and  South  Sea  bubbles. — 
Jacobite  risings.  France:  Louis  XV  and  the  Regency. — Bourbon 
"family  compact."  War  of  the  Austrian  Succession:  The  "prag- 
matic sanction"  of  Charles  VI. — Frederick  the  Great  and  other 
spoils-hunters. — Results  of  the  war.  The  Seven  Years  War  in 
Europe:    Combination   against    Frederick   the  Great. — His  great 


xxii  Contents 

defensive  campaigns.  The  War  in  America:  The  French  in  the 
Ohio  Valley. — Washington's  entrance  into  history. — Braddock's 
defeat. — Dispersion  of  the  Acadians. — Pitt's  infusion  of  new 
spirit  into  the  war. — Wolfe's  capture  of  Quebec. — Retirement  of 
France  from  America. — Pontiac's  war.  The  War  in  India:  French 
and  English  struggle  for  supremacy. — Clive's  career. — The  "black 
hole  of  Calcutta." — Subjugation  of  Bengal. — Expulsion  of  the 
French.  Russia:  The  four  tzarinas. — Catherine  II.  Great  Britain 
and  her  colonies:  George  III. — The  "king's  friends." — Their 
colonial  policy. — The  "stamp  act"  and  its  repeal. — Patrick  Henry. 
— Samuel  Adams. — The  tea  question  and  "the  Boston  tea 
party." — Punishment  of  Boston  and  Massachusetts. — The  first 
"continental  congress." — Lexington  and  Concord. — The  colonies 
in    arms. — Washington  appointed  to  chief  command.   .   954-1000 

CHAPTER  XIX 

FROM  THE  ADVENT   OF   WASHINGTON    IN 

THE  AMERICAN  REVOLUTION  TO 

HIS  DEATH 

(1775    TO    I799) 

Continuity  of  revolutionary  influence  from  the  English  Long 
Parliament  to  the  French  States-general.  The  War  of  American 
Independence:  Campaigns  and  battles  of  the  war. — Discouraging 
conditions. — Trials  of  Washington. — Surrender  of  Cornwallis. — 
Treaty  of  peace.  iiThe  critical  period  of  American  history:" 
Weakness  of  the  Confederation. — Framing  and  adoption  of  the 
federal  constitution.  The  British  empire:  Hostilities  with  France, 
Spain  and  Holland. — Wars  in  India. — Concessions  to  Ireland. — 
Industrial  revolution  in  Great  Britain.  France:  The  approaching 
political  revolution. — Its  causes. — Its  outbreak. — Meeting  of  the 
States-general. — Assumption  of  supremacy  by  the  third  estate. — 
The  Girondists. — The  Jacobins. — Overthrow  of  the  monarchy. — 
Execution  of  the  king. — Fall  of  the  Girondists. — Crusade  against 
all  monarchies. — "The  reign  of  terror." — The  Jacobin  factions 
devouring  one  another.— End  of  "the  terror." — Advent  of 
Napoleon  Bonaparte. — His  campaign  in  Italy. — His  expedition 
to  Egypt,  and  return. — His  domination  as  first  consul.  The 
Partitioning  of  Poland:  The  three  partitions.  The  United  States  of 
America:  Organization  of  federal  government  under  Washington. 
— Financial  measures  of  Hamilton. — Lasting  division  of  political 
parties. — Troubles  with  England  and  France. — Administration  of 
John  Adams. — Overthrow  of  the  Federalists.  British  America: 
The  Quebec  Act. — United  Empire  Loyalists. — Act  of  1791. 

1001-1064 


Contents  xxiii 

HISTORIC  EPOCH  VI. 

EPOCH  OF  SCIENCE,  MECHANISM,  DEMOCRACY, 
AND  THE  TRANSFORMING  OF  THE  WORLD. 

CHIEF  CHARACTERS  OF  THE  EPOCH 

CHAPTER  XX 

FROM    THE    DEATH    OF  WASHINGTON  TO 
THE  ADVENT  OF  STEPHENSON  AND 
THE  STEAM  RAILWAY 


(1799  TO    1S30) 

The  days  of  absolute  government  numbered. — History  assum- 
ing a  new  tenor. — Beginning  of  a  transformation  of  the  world. 
The  Napoleonic  Wars:  Second  defeat  of  Austria. — Reconstruction 
of  Germany. — Napoleon  emperor. — Austerlitz  and  Trafalgar. — 
Subjugation  of  Prussia. — Warfare  by  destruction  of  trade. — 
Napoleon's  crime  against  Spain. — The  Spanish  uprising. — The 
humiliation  of  Germany. — The  making  of  Prussia. — Napoleon 
in  Russia. — Beginning  of  his  overthrow.  His  fall. — His  return 
from  Elba. — Waterloo. — St.  Helena.  The  United  States  of  America 
during  the  Napoleonic  Wars:  Neutral  trade. — Humiliations  endured. 
— Presidency  of  Jefferson. — The  Louisiana  purchase.- — Wrongs 
and  insults  from  England  and  France. — English  claim  to  a  right 
of  search. — Madison's  presidency. — Napoleon's  knavery. — W  ar  of 
1812  with  England. — Beginning  of  a  conscious  national  life.  Europe 
after  the  fall  of  Napoleon:  The  English  corn  laws. — Reconstruction 
work  of  the  Congress  of  Vienna. — The  Holy  Alliance. — Revolu- 
tions of  1820  and  1830. — Ireland  and  Catholic  emancipation.  New 
departure  in  social  progress:  Effects  of  steamboat  and  railway.  The 
United  States  after  the  war  of  1812:  Steam  navigation. — Canal 
building. — "The  cotton  gin." — Its  effects  on  slavery. — Question 
of  slavery  in  the  Territories. — The  Missouri  compromise. — The 
"Monroe  doctrine."  British  America:  Discontent  in  the  Can- 
adas.  Spanish  America:  Revolt  and  Independence  of  Spanish 
provinces.  Santo  Domingo:  Revolt. — Slave  rising. — Toussaint 
L'Ouverture.  Brazil:  Founding  of  the  independent  empire.  Aus- 
tralia: Growth  of  New  South  Wales.  India:  Extension  of  British 
Rule 1102-1170 


xxiv  Contents 

CHAPTER  XXI 

FROM  THE  ADVENT  OF  GEORGE  STEPHEN- 
SON AND  THE  STEAM  RAILWAY  TO  THE 
ELECTION  OF  ABRAHAM  LINCOLN 
PRESIDENT  OF  THE  UNITED 
STATES 

(183O   TO    i860) 

Era  of  the  railway  and  the  telegraph.  Great  Britain:  First  reform 
of  parliament. — Opening  of  the  reign  of  Queen  Victoria. — The 
Chartist  movement. — Repeal  of  corn  laws. — Free  trade  legislation. 
— Peel. — Gladstone. — Disraeli. — Ireland  and  O'Connell's  agitation. 
European  Revolutions  of  184.8  and  after:  Italy. — France. — Ger- 
many.— Hungary. — Coup  d'etat  of  Louis  Napoleon. — The  Crimean 
War. — Liberation  and  unification  of  Italy.  The  United  States: 
Andrew  Jackson  president. — Jackson  and  nullification. — Jackson 
and  the  United  States  Bank. — The  financial  collapse  of  1837. — 
President  Van  Buren. — Formation  of  the  Whig  party. — Rise  of 
the  Abolitionists. — Agitation  of  the  slavery  question. — Annexation 
of  Texas. — War  with  Mexico. — Acquisition  of  California,  New  Mex- 
ico, etc. — Question  of  slavery  in  the  new  territory. — Compromise 
of  1850. — Fugitive  slave  law. — "Uncle  Tom's  Cabin." — Stephen 
A.  Douglas. — Doctrine  of  "popular  sovereignty." — Kansas-Ne- 
braska bill. — Rise  of  Republican  party. — Struggle  for  Kansas. — 
Dred  Scott  decision. — Lecompton  constitution  for  Kansas. — 
Douglas  Democratic  revolt. — Douglas  and  Lincoln  debates. — John 
Brown's  invasion  of  Virginia. — Election  of  Abraham  Lincoln. 
British  America:  Rebellion  in  the  Canadas. — Reunion  of  the  two 
provinces.  Australia  and  New  Zealand:  Founding  of  the  colonies 
of  Western  Australia,  Victoria,  South  Australia,  New  Zealand,  and 
Queensland. — Discoveries  of  gold.  India  and  Afghanistan:  Tragedy 
of  the  Afghan  war. — The  sepoy  revolt.  China:  The  "Opium 
War." — The  Tai-ping  rebellion. — Second  war  with  England. 
Japan:  The  Perry  expedition. — Opening  of  ports  to  foreigners. 
South  Africa:  Founding  of  the  Boer  republics.       .      .       1171-1230 

CHAPTER  XXII 

FROM  THE  ELECTION  OF  ABRAHAM  LINC- 
OLN PRESIDENT  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES 
TO  BISMARCK'S  FOUNDING  OF  THE 
GERMAN  EMPIRE 

(i860  TO   I871) 

The  United  States  of  America:     Secession  and  confederation  of 


Contents  xxv 

slave-holding  States. — Opening  of  civil  war. — Blockade  of  Con- 
federate ports. — Battle  of  Bull  Run. — The  "Monitor"  and  the 
"Merrimac." — Grant's  first  successes. — McClellan's  peninsular 
campaign. — Rising  fame  of  the  Confederate  generals  Lee  and 
Jackson. — Farragut's  capture  of  New  Orleans. — Lee's  first  invasion 
of  Maryland. — President  Lincoln's  proclamation  of  emancipation. 
— Dark  period  of  national  reverses. — Political  opposition  in  the 
north. — Outfit  of  Confederate  cruisers  in  England.— Lee's  second 
movement  northward. — Gettysburg. — Vicksburg. — Grant's  Chat- 
tanooga campaign. — Lincoln's  amnesty  and  plan  of  reconstruction. 
— Grant's  campaign  against  Richmond. — Reelection  of  Lincoln. 
— Sherman's  march  to  the  sea. — Crumbling  and  fall  of  the  Con- 
federacy.— End  of  the  war. — Murder  of  President  Lincoln. — 
Presidency  of  Andrew  Johnson. — His  rupture  with  congress. — 
Congressional  measures  of  reconstruction  and  their  results. — Peri- 
od of  demoralizations. — Presidency  of  General  Grant. — Settlement 
of  "Alabama"  claims.  Events  in  Europe:  Unification  of  Italy 
— Austro-Prussian  and  Franco-German  wars. — Unification  of  Ger- 
many in  a  federal  empire. — Federation  of  Austria-Hungary.^ — 
Birth  of  the  third  French  republic. — Disraeli  and  Gladstone  min- 
istries in  Great  Britain. — Irish  Fenianism. — Revolution  in  Spain. 
— Emancipation  in  Russia. — Russians  in  Central  Asia.  British 
America:  Confederation  of  the  Dominion  of  Canada.  Mexico: 
French  conquest. — Maximilian's  empire  and  its  fall.  Egypt: 
Ismail  Pasha,  khedive. — The  Suez  canal. — Japan:  Fall  of  the 
shogunate. — End  of  feudalism  and  the  daimiates.      .       1231-1276 

CHAPTER  XXIII 

FROM    BISMARCK'S  FOUNDING    OF   THE 

GERMAN  EMPIRE  TO  THE  DEATH 

OF    VICTORIA 

(187I    TO    I90l) 

The  Peace  Conference  at  The  Hague.  Great  Britain  and  Ireland: 
Beaconsfield  and  "jingoism." — The  third  reform  bill. — Gladstone's 
Irish  home  rule  bills. — Rupture  in  the  Liberal  party. — Salisbury 
ministry. — Pacifying  measures  for  Ireland. — Death  of  Queen 
Victoria.  The  French  Republic:  The  Dreyfus  agitation. — Public 
control  of  education.  The  German  Empire:  William  II. — Im- 
perial egotism. — The  new  Germany. — Socialistic  paternalism. 
Russia  and  her  neighbors:  Russo-Turkish  war. — Russian  treatment 
of  Finland. — Development  of  Siberia. — Dangerous  discontent  in 
the  empire.  Japan,  China,  Korea,  and  the  Russians  in  eastern 
Asia:  War  between  Japan  and  China. — Treatment  of  China  by 
western   powers. — The   "Boxer"    outbreak. — Russian    designs    in 


xxvi  Contents 

Manchuria.  Egypt  and  the  Sudan:  Foreign  control  of  Egyptian 
finances. — Arabi's  revolt. — British  suppression  of  it. — The  "Mahdi" 
in  the  Sudan. — Fate  of  Colonel  Gordon. — Egyptian  conquest 
of  the  Sudan.  The  partitioning  of  Africa:  The  Congo  Free 
State. — The  Berlin  Conference. — Scramble  for  African  territory. 
Boer-Briton  war:  Its  causes  and  results.  The  United  States:  Con- 
ditions in  the  south. — Monetary  questions. — Greenback  and 
Silver  parties. — Tariff  questions. — Civil  service  reform. — War  with 
Spain. — Acquisition  and  subjugation  of  the  Philippines. — Lib- 
eration of  Cuba. — Panama  Canal. — Material  progress. — Impe- 
rialistic ambitions.  Elsewhere:  Prosperity  in  Canada. — Progress 
under  Diaz  in  Mexico. — Fall  of  the  Brazilian  empire. — Confedera- 
tion of  Australian  colonies. — Socialistic  experiments  in  New 
Zealand.  1277-13  29 

CHAPTER  XXIV 

FROM  THE  DEATH  OF  QUEEN  VICTORIA 
TO  THE  PRESENT  DAY 

(A.  D.  1901  to  1914) 
The  shifting  of  frontiers. — Spread  of  democracy.  Great  Britain 
and  Ireland:  King  Edward  VII. — Chamberlain  and  Tariff  Reform. 
— Entente  cordiale — King  George  V. — Power  of  House  of  Lords 
curtailed. — Woman's  suffrage. — Growth  of  imperialism. — Home 
Rule. — The  Ulster  crisis.  The  French  Republic:  Separation  of 
Church  and  State. — Socialists  to  the  fore. — President  Poincare. — 
Colonial  expansion.  Germany:  Industrial  growth. — Naval  rivalry. 
Austria-Hungary:  Racial  conflict. — Bosnia  and  Herzegovina 
annexed. — Assassination  of  Francis  Ferdinand.  Russia:  National 
Duma  created. — Agrarian  reform. — Russification  of  Finland  and 
Poland.  Italy:  King  Victor  Emmanuel  III. — Labor  troubles. — 
Pope  Pius  X. — Tripoli  wrested  from  Turkey.  The  Iberian  Penin- 
sula: King  Alfonso  XIII. — Execution  of  Ferrer. — Industrial  unrest 
in  Spain. — Anticlericalism. — Murder  of  King  Carlos. — Portugal 
a  republic.  Scandinavia:  Dissolution  of  union  between  Norway 
and  Sweden. — Nobel  Prizes.  Southeastern  Europe:  The  Belgrade 
murders. — Bulgarian  independence. — The  Young  Turks. — Abdul 
Hamid  deposed. — Cretan  crisis.  The  Balkan  War:  Turkish 
defeats. — Assassination  of  King  George  of  Greece. — Disruption  of 
the  Balkan  league.  The  Second  Balkan  War:  Bulgaria  stripped  of 
her  spoils.  Albania:  Prince  William  of  Wied.  Japan:  The  Russo- 
Japanese  War.  China:  Crusade  against  opium. — The  Chinese 
Republic. — Yuan  Shih-kai.  The  United  States:  Roosevelt's  second 
term. — The  immigration  question. — Californian  disaster. — Money 
panic. — President  Taft. — Canadian  reciprocity. — Prosecution  of  the 
Trusts. — Rise  of  Progressive  party. — Return  of  Democrats  to  power. 
— President  Wilson. — Constitutional  amendments. — The  Phil- 
ippines. Latin  American  Republics:  Mexican  revolutions. — Amer- 
ican intervention. — Occupation  of  Vera  Cruz.  Elsewhere:  Canadian 
development. — Australia  and  New  Zealand. — India  and  Egypt. 


ANALYTICAL  OUTLINE  OF  SEVENTY 
CENTURIES 


INTRODUCTION 

The  Prehistoric  Peoples 

I 
The  Epoch  of  Earliest  Civilizations  and  Known  Empires 

(To  the  Persian  Invasions  of  Greece) 

I.     From  the  Earliest  Known  Records  to  the  Supposed  Age  of 
Abraham 

(Approximately,  B.  C.  4700  to  2200) 

II      From  the  Supposed  Age  of  Abraham  to  the  Death  of  David 

(Approximately,  B.  C.  2200  to  960) 

III.  From  the  Death  of  David  to  the  Advent  of  Cyrus 

(Approximately,  B.  C.  960  to  558) 

IV.  From  the  Advent  of  Cyrus  to  the  Age  of  Xerxes 

(B.  C.  558  to  480) 

II 

The  Epoch  of  the  Greeks  and  the  Romans 

(From  the  Persian  Invasions  of  Greece  to  the  Gothic  Capture 

of  Rome) 

V.  From  the  Age  of  Xerxes  to  the  Age  of  Hannibal 

(B.  C.  480  to  200) 

VI.  From  the  Age  of  Hannibal  to  the  Death  of  Caesar 

(B.  C.  200  to  44) 

VII.  From  the  Death  of  Caesar  to  the  Death  of  Alaric 

(B.  C.  44  to  A.  D.  410) 

III 

The  Epoch  of  the  New  Nations,  Known  as  the  Middle 

Ages 

(From  the  Gothic  Capture  of  Rome  to  the  Turkish  Capture  of 

Constantinople) 

VIII.  From  the  Death  of  Alaric  to  the  Advent  of  Charlemagne 

(A.  D.  410  to  768) 

IX.  From  the  Advent  of  Charlemagne  to  the  Death  of  Hildebrand 

(A.  D.  768  to  1085) 

X.  From  the  Death  of  Hildebrand  to  the  Exile  of  Dante 

(A.  D.  1085  to  1302) 

XI.  From  the  Exile  of  Dante  to  the  Advent  of  Gutenberg 

(A.  D.  1302  to  1454) 

XII.  The  Historical  World  at  the  End  of  the  Middle  Ages 

(The  Fifteenth  Century) 

XXVII 


xxvin  Analytical  Outline 

IV 

The  Epoch  of  Modernizing  Expansions,  Called  the 

Renaissance 

(From  the  Turkish  Capture  of    Constantinople    to  the  Preludes 
of  Revolution  in  England) 

XIII.  From  the  Advent  of  Gutenberg  to  the  Advent  of  Luther 

(A.  D.  1454  to  1517) 

XIV.  From  the  Advent  of  Luther  to  the  Abdication  of  the  Em- 
peror Charles  V. 

(A.  D.  1517  to  1556) 

XV.  From  the  Abdication  of  the  Emperor  Charles  V.  to  the 
Assassination  of  Henry  IV.  of  France 

(A.  D.  1556  to  1610) 

V 

The  Epoch  of  Political  Revolutions 

(From  the  Preludes  of  Revolution  in  England  to  the  Napoleonizing 
of  the  Revolution  in  France) 

XVI.  From  the  Assassination  of  Henry  IV.  of  France  to  the 
Death  of  Cromwell 

(1610  to  1658) 

XVII.  From  the  Death  of  Cromwell  to  the  Death  of  Louis  XIV. 
of  France 

(1658  to  1715) 

XVIII.  From  the  Death  of  Louis  XlV.  of  France  to  the  Advent 
of  Washington  in  the  American  Revolution 

(1715  to  1775) 

XIX.  From  the  Advent  of  Washington  in  the  American  Revo- 
lution to  his  Death 

(1775  to  1799) 

VI 

The  Epoch  of  Science,  Mechanism,  Democracy,  and  the 
Transforming  of  the  World 

(From  the  Napoleonizing  of  the  French  Revolution  to  the  Present 

Day) 

XX.  From  the  Death  of  Washington  to  the  Advent  of  Stephen- 
son and  the  Steam  Railway 

(1799  to  1830) 

XXI.  From  the  Advent  of  George  Stephenson  to  the  Election  of 
Abraham  Lincoln,  President  of  the  United  States 

(1830  to  i860) 

XXII.  From  the  Election  of  Abraham  Lincoln  to  Bismarck's 
founding  of  the  German  Empire 

(i860  to  1871) 

XXIII.  From  Bismarck's  Founding  of  the  German  Empire  to  the 
Death  of  Victoria 

(1871  to  1901) 

XXIV.  From  the  Death  of  Victoria  to  the  Present  Day 


ILLUSTRATIONS 

I."  The  Acropolis,  from  the  Southwest, 

Frontispiece  to  Vol.  I 
From  a  photograph 

Facing  Page 

2.  Ptah-Hetep  .....         24 

From  The  Archaeological  Survey  of  Egypt,  Eighth 
Memoir,  Plate  XXVI 

3.  Thothmes  III  ....         24 

From  the  statue  in  the  Turin  Museum 

4.  Amenhotep  IV  ....         24 

From  the  statuette  in  the  Louvre 

5.  Ramses  II  .....         24 

From  the  Eleventh  Memoir  of  the  Egyptian  Ex- 
ploration Fund,  Plate  X 

6.  Moses  ......         30 

From  the  statue  by  Michael  Angelo  (1475-1564) 
made  for  the  tomb  of  Pope  Julius  II,  in  the  San 
Pietro  in  Vinculi,  Rome 

7.  David 30 

The  head  of  the  colossal  statue  by  Michael  Angelo, 
known  as  the  "David  of  the  Piazza,"  which  stood 
uncovered  upon  the  steps  of  the  Palazzo  Vecchio,  in 
Florence,  from  1504  to  1873,  when  it  was  removed 
to  its  present  position  in  the  Academy  of  Fine  Arts, 
Florence 

8.  GOTAMA  .  .  .  .      •       .       •      30 

From  the  ancient  statue  ,  , 

9.  Sappho  .  .  .  .     >    .     ,     30 

Bust  in  the  Villa  Albani,  Rome 

10.  Lycurgus  .         .         .    '  .     '    32 

Bust  in  the  National  Museum,  Naples       / 

11.  Solon  .  .  .  .  .  .    ,     32 

Bust  in  the  National  Museum,  Naples 

XXIX 


xxx  Illustrations 

Facing  Page 

12.  Miltiades  .....         32 

Bust  in  the  Louvre,  Paris 

13.  Themistocles  ....         32 

Bust  in  the  Vatican,  Rome 

14.  Hammurabi  .....  54 

From  Memoire  de  la  Delegation  en  Perse,  Plate  IV 

15.  Israel  in  Egypt  ....         68 

From  the  painting  by  Sir  Edward  J.  Poynter,  R.  A. 
(1836-) 

16.  Homer  .....         92 

From    the    painting    by   Francois    Pascal   Gerard 
(1770-1837) 

17.  Arch  of  Temple  of  Ramses  IV  .       120 

From  a  French  photograph  of  the  "Porte  Triomphe" 
of  the  Temple  of  Ramses  IV.,  at  Karnak,  Thebes 

18.  Alexander  the  Great         .         .         .       185 

Head  of  statue  in  the  Glyptohek,  Munich 

19.  Pericles  .....        185 

Bust  in  the  British  Museum,  London 

20.  Socrates  .....       185 

Bust  in  the  Capitol,  Rome 

21.  Plato  ......        185 

Bust  in  the  Uffizi  Gallery,  Florence 

22.  Aristotle  .....        188 

Bust  in  the  Hall  Collection  

23.  ^ESCHYLUS  .....  l88 

Bust  in  the  Capitol,  Rome 

24.  Thucydides  .....        188 

Bust  in  the  National  Museum,  Naples 

25.  Ptolemy  Soter  ....        188 

From  an  ancient  coin 

26.  Demosthenes  ....       195 

Statue  in  the  Vatican,  Rome 


Illustrations  xxxi 

Facing  page 

27.  Hannibal  .....       195 

Bust  in  the  National  Museum,  Naples 

28.  Cicero  ....  195 

Bust  in  the  Uffizi  Gallery,  Florence 

29.  Julius  Caesar  ....        198 

Bust  in  the  National  Museum,  Naples 

30.  Augustus  .....        198 

"The  Crowned  Augustus."     Bust  in  the  Vatican, 
Rome 

31.  Mark  Antony  ....       198 

Bust  in  the  Louvre,  Paris 

32.  Virgil  ......       198 

Bust  in  the  Capitol,  Rome 

33.  Tacitus  .....       204 

An  Antique  bust 

34.  Marcus  Aurelius  .  .  .       204 

Bust  in  the  Capitol,  Rome 

35.  Trajan  .....       204 

Bust  in  the  Vatican,  Rome 

36.  Antoninus  Pius  ....       204 

Bust  in  the  British  Museum.  London 

37.  "Death  of  Alexander"  .  .       222 

From  the  painting  by  Karl  von  Piloty  (1826-1886) 
now  in  the  National  Gallery.  Berlin 

38.  "Cicero  Against  Catiline"  .  .       266 

From  the  painting  by  Casare  Maccari  (1840-) 

39.  "  Christ  Before  Pilate"    Frontispiece  to  Vol.  II 

From  the  painting  by  Mihaly  Munkacsy   (1844- 
1900)  owned  by  John  Wanamaker 

40.  "Return  of    Germans   After  Battle  in 

Teutoberg  Forest"        .         .         .       283 

From  the  painting  by  Paul  Thumann  (1834-),  now 
in  the  Gymnasium,  Minden 


xxxn  Illustrations 

Facing  page 

41.  "Paul  Preaching  at  Athens"  .       292 

One  of  the  cartoons  made  by  Raphael  (1483-1520) 
as  designs  for  decoration  of  the  Sistine  Chapel. 
The  cartoons  are  now  in  the  South  Kensington 
Museum,  London 

42.  "Diana,  or  Christ?"  .         .         .       310 

From  the  painting  by  Edwin  Long,  R.  A.  (1824- 
1881) 

43.  Mohammed  .....       340 

From  an  old  print;  likeness  traditional 

44.  Pope  Gregory  I  ....       340 

From  an  engraving  in  the  British  Museum,  London 

45.  Alfred  the  Great  .  .  .       340 

From  an  engraving  by  G.  Longhi  (1776-183 1),  in 
the  Hall  Collection 

46.  William  the  Conqueror  .  .       340 

From  a  copy  of  a  painting  from  an  ancient  effigy 

47.  Richard  I  .....       348 

From  an  engraving  by  Vertue  (1684-1756) 

48.  Henry  II  .....       348 

From  an  engraving  by  Vertue 

49.  St.  Francis  .....       348 

Copy  of  an  old  engraving  in  the  Hall  Collection, 
from  the  Spanish  picture  after  the  authentic  por- 
trait which  is  in  the  Cathedral  of  Toledo,  Spain 

50.  Edward  I  .....       348 

From  an  engraving  by  Vertue 

51.  Louis  IX  .....       351 

From  a  fresco  by  Giotto  (1266-1357),  in  the  church 
of  Santa  Croce,  Florence 

52.  Frederick  II  ....       351 

From  an  engraving  by  J.  Outrier 

53.  Henry  V  .....       351 

From  the  bust  in  Jerusalem  Chamber,  Westminster 
Abbey 


Illustrations  xxxiii 


Facing  page 

54- 

Jeanne  d'Arc 

From  a  painting  in  the  Louvre 

■  -     351 

55- 

VVlCLIF            .... 

•       354 

• 

From  an  engraving  by  C.  White 

56. 

Dante           .... 

•       354 

From  the  painting  by  Raphael  (1483-1520).  After 
Dante's  death  a  mask  was  taken,  in  plaster,  of  the 
face.  Raphael  painted  Dante  after  the  mask  like- 
ness in  two  of  his  principal  works 

57.  Petrarch  .         .  .         .         -354 

From  the  painting  by  Tofanelli 

58.  Chaucer  .  ....       354 

From  the  portrait  by  Kramer 

59.  "Pillage  of  a  Roman  Villa  by  Huns"         360 

From  the  painting  by  Georges  Rochegrosse 

60.  Charlemagne  ....       400 

From  the  portrait  by  Albrecht  Diirer  (1471-1528), 
now  in  the  German  Museum,  Nuremberg 

61.  "Henry  IV  at  Canossa"  .  .       424 

From  the  painting  by  Eduard  Schwoisser  (1827-) 
in  the  Maximilianeum,  Munich 

62.  "Peter    the    Hermit     Preaching    the 

First  Crusade"      ....       439 

From  the  painting  by  James  Archer  (1824-) 

63.  "St.  Louis  Administering  Justice"  481 

From  a  mural  painting  in  the  Pantheon,  by  Alex- 
andre Cabanel  (1823-1889) 

64.  "Columbus  at  Court  of  Ferdinand  and 

Isabella"     .  Frontispiece  to  Vol.  Ill 

From  the  painting  by  Vaczlav  Brozik  (1852-1900) 

65.  Shakespeare       .  ....       630 

"The  Janssen  Portrait,"  said  to  have  been  painted 
by  Cornelius  Janssen  (1592-1662)  for  the  Earl  of 
Southampton 


xxxiy  Illustrations 

Facing  page 

66.  Gutenberg     r     .         .         .         .         .632 

From  an  ancient  print 

67.  Columbus  .         .         .         .         .632 

From  the  painting  in  the  Marine  Museum,  Madrid 

68.  Copernicus  .....       632 

From  an  old  engraving 

69.  Bacon       .  .....       632 

From  an  engraving  by  Jacobus  Houbraken  (1698- 
1780) 

70.  Cervantes  .....       634 

From  the  portrait  by  Josef  del  Castillo  (1737-1793), 
who  made  the  drawings  for  the  edition  of  "Don 
Quixote"  published  by  the  Madrid  Academy 

71.  Raphael  .....       634 

"In  Youth."  From  the  original  painting  made  in 
1506-7  by  Raphael  himself  (1493-1520),  now  in  the 
Gallery  at  Florence 

72.  Michael  Angelo  ....       634 

From  the  original  painting  in  the  Hall  Collection, 
by  Michael  Angelo  himself  (1475-1564) 

73.  Lorenzo  de'  Medici    ....       634 

From  the  painting  by  Giorgio  Vasari  (1511-1574), 
now  in  the  Uffizi  Palace,  Florence 

74.  Savonarola  .         .  .         .  639 

From  the  painting  by  Fra  Bartolommeo  (1475- 
15 17),  now  in  the  Museum  of  St.  Mark,  Florence 

75.  Luther  .....       639 

From  the  portrait  by  Lucas  Cranach  (1472-1553), 
now  in  the  Berlin  Museum 

76.  Erasmus  .         .         .         .         .639 

From  the  painting  by  Hans  Holbein  (1497-1543), 
in  the  Louvre,  Paris 

77.  Loyola  .....       639 

From  the  painting  by  Peter  Paul  Rubens  (1577- 
1640),  now  in  the  Gallery  at  Vienna 

78.  Charles  V 650 

From  the  painting  by  Titian  (1477-1576) 


Illustrations  ixxv 

Facing  page 

79.  Henry  IV  .....       650 

From  a  painting  in  the  Louvre 

80.  William  the  Silent    ....       650 

From  the  painting  by  M.  J.  Miereveldt  (1567-1641), 
now  in  The  Hague  Gallery 

81.  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  .  .  .       650 

From  the  engraving  by  Jacobus  Houbraken  (1698- 
1780) 

82.  "Luther  at  the  Diet  at  Worms"      .       695 

From  the  painting  by  Anton  A.  Von  Werner  (1834-), 
now  in  the  Museum  at  Stuttgart 

83.  "Mary  Stuart  Receiving  Death  Sen- 

tence" .....       786 

From  the  painting  by  Karl  vonjPiloty  (1826-1886), 
now  in  the  new  Pinakothek,  Munich 

84.  GUSTAVUS    ADOLPHUS       ....  814 

From  the  painting  by  Anthony  Van  Dyck  (1599- 
1641) 

85.  Hampden      ......       814 

From  an  engraving  by  Houbraken  from  the  original 
painting  in  the  possession  of  Sir  Richard  Ellys,  Bart. 

86.  Cromwell  .....       814 

From  the  painting  made  in  1653  by  Sir  Peter  Lely 
(1618-1680),  now  in  the  Pitti  Gallery,  Florence 

87.  Earl  of  Strafford      .         .         .         .814 

From  the  painting  by  Van  Dyck 

'88.    Laud 823 

From  the  painting  by  Van  Dyck,  in  the  Hermitage, 
St.  Petersburg 

89    Richelieu     ......       823 

From   the   painting   by   Philippe   de   Champaigne 
(1602-1674),  now  in  the  Louvre,  Paris 

90.    Peter  the  Great         .  .         .       823 

From  an  engraving  by  Houbraken  from  the  paint- 
ing by  Karel  de  Moor  (1656-1738) 


xxxvi  Illustrations 

Facing  page 

91.  Penn 823 

"The  Place  Portrait."  From  the  painting  in  Inde- 
pendence Hall,  Philadelphia,  by  H.  J.  Wright,  after 
the  original  painted  by  Francis  Place  in  1696,  when 
Penn  was  52  years  of  age,  owned  by  R.  H.  Allen, 
Blackwell  Hall,  Durham,  England 

92.  Frederick  II.,  the  Great.  .  .       828 

From  the  painting  by  Antoine  Pesne  (1684-1757), 
now  in  the  Berlin  Museum 

93.  Earl  of  Chatham       ....       828 

From  an  engraving  by  Richard  Houston  (1 721-1775) 

94.  Samuel  Adams   .....       828 

From  the  original  painting  by  John  Singleton 
Copley,  R.A.  (173 7-1 8 15),  now  in  the  Museum  of 
Fine  Arts,  Boston,  representing  Adams  in  1771,  at 
the  age  of  49 

95.  Hamilton  ......       828 

From  the  original  painting  by  John  Trumbull 
(1756-1843),  now  in  the  Museum  of  Fine  Arts, 
Boston 

96.  MlRABEAU  .  .  .  .  .  .832 

From  the  paint'.ig  by  J.  Guerin  (1774-1823) 

97.  Wesley      ......       832 

From  the  painting  by  John  Jackson,  R.A.  (1778- 
1831) 

98.  Goethe      .         .         .         .         .  .832 

"At  Eighty."  From  the  painting  for  which  Goethe 
sat  in  his  eightieth  year.  "The  favorite  portrait  of 
Goethe" 

99.  Voltaire    .         .         .         .         .         .832 

From  the  bust  by  Houdon,  at  Versailles 

100.  "Milton  Dictating  Paradise  Lost".       834 

From  the  original  painting,  made  in  1878,  by  Mihaly 
Munkacsy  (1844-1900),  now  in  the  Public  Library, 
New  York 

101.  Burke        ......       836 

From  the  painting  by  George  Romney  (1734-1802) 


Illustrations  xxxvii 

Facing  page 

102.  Kant  ,  • 836 

From  the  painting  by  Johan  C.  Schnorr  Von  Kar- 
olsfeld  (1764-1841),  now  in  the  Gallery  at  Dresden 

103.  Newton     ......       836 

From  the  painting  by  Sir  Godfrey  Kneller  (1646- 
1723),  now  in  Hampton  Court  Palace 

104.  James  Watt        .....       836 

From  the  bust  by  Sir  F.  Chantrey,  R.A. 

105.  "Cromwell  at  Whitehall"       .  .       854 

From  the  painting  by  Julius  Schrader  (1815-) 

106.  Washington        .  .    Frontispiece  to  Vol.  IV 

From  the  original  painting,  made  in  1796,  by  Gil- 
bert Stuart  (1755-1828),  known  as  the  "Athenaeum 
Portrait,"  now  in  the  Museum  of  Fine  Arts,  Boston 

107.*    ,Franklin  .  .  .  .  .971 

From  the  original  painting  by  Jean  Baptiste  Greuze 
(1725-1805),  now  in  the  Public  Library,  Boston 

108.  v  Patrick    Henry  Addressing   Virginia 

Assembly"     .....       989 

From  the  painting  by  Peter  F.  Rothermel  (1817- 
1895),  now  in  the  Academy  at  Philadelphia 

109.  '  f* Death  of  Earl  of  Chatham"  .       991 

From  the  painting  made  in  1779-80  by  John  Single- 
ton Copley,  RA.  (1737-1815),  now  in  the  National 
Gallery,  London 

1 10.  "  Washington    Resigning     Command  of 

the    Army" 1018 

From  the  painting  by  John  Trumbull  (1756-1843), 
now  in  the  Rotunda  of  the  Capitol,  at  Washington 

in.     "Last  Victims  of  Reign  of  Terror"     1038 

From  the  painting  by  Charles  Louis  Miiller  (1815- 
1892),  now  in  the  Louvre,  Paris 

112.     George  Stephenson  ....     1073 

From  the  painting  by  H.  P.  Briggs,  R.A.  (1792- 
1844) 


XXXVIII 


Illustrations 


Facing  page 

113.  Edison        ......     1073 

From  a  photograph  from  life 

114.  Bessemer  .         .         .  T  1073 

From  a  photograph  from  life  '_  J 

115.  Pasteur     ......     1073 

From  a  photograph  from  life 

116.  Darwin      ......     1081 

From  a  photograph  from  life 

117.  Wordsworth       .....      108 1 

From  the  painting  by  Benjamin  R.  Haydon  (1786- 
1848) 

118.  Victor  Hugo      .....      108 1 

From  a  photograph  from  life 

119.  Tennyson  ......     1081 

From  a  protrait  by  P.  Kramer 

120.  Longfellow       .....     1086 

From  a  portrait  by  P.  Kramer 

121.  Dickens      ......      1086 

From  a  photograph  from  life 

122.  CARLYLE       ......       IO86 

From  a  photograph  from  life 

123.  Mary  Baker  Eddy     ....      1086 

From  a  photograph  from  life 

124.  Napoleon  ......      1091 

From  the  painting  by  Jacques  Louis  David  (1747- 
1825),  in  Warwick  Castle 

125.  Pitt  .......      1091 

From  the  painting  by  Anton  Hickel  (1745-1798) 

126.  Jefferson  .....      1091 

From  original  painting  by  Gilbert  Stuart  (1755— 
1828),  in  the  rooms  of  Historical  Society,  New  York 
City 


Illustrations 


XXXIX 


Facing  page 

127. 

Andrew  Jackson        .         .        '. 

109I 

From  the  original  portrait  painted  in  1845  by  G 

.P. 

A.  Healy  (1813-1895) 

128. 

John  Marshall           .          . 
From  an  engraving 

IO94 

129. 

Garibaldi            ..... 
From  a  photograph  from  life 

IO94 

130. 

Gladstone           ..... 

From  a  photograph  from  life 

IO94 

131- 

Calhoun    ...... 

From  a  photograph  from  life 

IO94 

132. 

Jefferson  Davis         .... 
From  a  photograph  from  life 

IO97 

133- 

General  Lee     ..... 

From  a  photograph  from  life 

IO97 

134- 

General  Grant          .... 

From  a  photograph  from  life 

IO97 

135- 

Farragut    ...... 

From  a  photograph  from  life 

IO97 

136. 

Count  di  Cavour       .... 

From  the  original  painting  by  Metzmacher 

IO98 

137- 

Bismarck   ...... 

From  a  photograph  from  life 

IO98 

138. 

Moltke       ...... 

From  a  photograph  from  life 

IO98 

139- 

John  Bright       ..... 

From  a  photograph  from  life 

IO98 

140. 

"Summons  to  Waterloo" 

From  a  reproduction  of  the  original  painting 

IIl8 

141. 

Lincoln      .          .             Frontispiece  to  Vol.   V 

From  a  photograph  from  life  by  Brady 

142. 

"Coronation  of  Queen  Victoria"     . 
From  the  painting  by  E.  T.  Pavis' 

1177 

XL 


Illustrations 


U3- 

144. 

145- 

146. 
147. 
148. 
149. 
150. 

151- 
152. 

153. 

154- 

155- 
156. 

157- 
158. 
159- 


"Emperor  William  I." 

From  the  painting  by  Emil  J.  Hunten 
of  the  Emperor's  staff 

Theodore  Roosevelt 

From  a  photograph  from  life 

Woodrow  Wilson 

From  a  photograph  from  life 

William  J.  Bryan    . 

From  a  photograph  from  life 

Porfirio  Diaz 

From  a  photograph  from  life 

Raymond  Poincare  . 

From  a  photograph  from  life 
Yuan  Skai-kai. 

From  a  photograph  from  life 
Robert  Laird  Borden 

From  a  photograph  from  life 
David  Lloyd-George 

From  a  photograph  from  life 

William  II 

From  a  photograph  from  life 

King  George  V 

From  a  photograph  from  life 
YOSHIHITO,    THE    MlKADO 

From  a  photograph  from  life 

Pius  X 

From  a  photograph  from  life 
Francisco  I.  Madero 

From  a  photograph  from  life 
Venustiano  Carranza 

From  a  photograph  from  life 
VlCTORIANO    HUERTA 

From  a  photograph  from  life 

Pancho  Villa  . 

From  a  photograph  from  life 


Facing  page 
.   1263 
(1827-1902), 

•  1325 

1325 

1325 

1325 

1336 

1336 

1336 

1336 

1347 

1347 

1347 

1347 

1358 

1358 

1358 

1358 


INTRODUCTION 
THE  PREHISTORIC  PEOPLES 

Historic  and  prehistoric  knowledge. — The  unrecorded  period  of  human  life 
in  different  countries. — The  paleolithic  stage  of  primitive  culture. — Flint- 
working  and  other  arts  in  the  "Old  Stone  Age." — The  geological  period  of 
that  Age. — Glacial  and  interglacial  times. — Intermixed  remains  of  arctic  and 
tropical  life. — The  neolithic  stage  of  culture,  or  "New  Stone  Age." — 
Remains  of  its  arts. — Lake-dwellings  in  Europe. — The  finding  of  metals. — 
Copper,  bronze  and  iron. — Genesis  of  variations  in  the  human  species. — 
What  is  fundamental  in  the  racial  differences? — Classification  of  men  by 
color.— Classification  by  language.— The  Aryan  hypothesis. — Searchings  for 
the  primitive  Aryan  home. — Classification  by  forms  of  the  human  skull. — 
The  "cephalic  index." — Long-heads  and  broad-heads. — Blondes  and  bru- 
nettes.— Prevalence  of  certain  physical  features  in  different  parts  of  the 
world. — Various  hypotheses  relative  to  the  primitive  peopling  of  Europe. 

Our  knowledge  of  mankind  in  the  past  divides 
naturally  into  two  kinds,  namely:  (i)  that  which 
men  of  departed  generations  have  transmitted  to 
us  consciously,  in  decipherable  writing,  which 
records  and  communicates  more  or  less  of  their  Historic 
names,  their  doings,  their  experiences,  or  their  prehistoric 
thoughts;  and  (2)  that  which  we  draw  by  infer-  knowledse 
ence  from  such  mute  relics  and  tokens  of  vanished 
peoples  as  we  sometimes  fine  buried  and  preserved 
by  chance  in  the  earth.  The  former  is  History,  in 
the  sense  now  given  to  the  term.  The  latter 
affords  nothing  of  a  story  of  human  life;  it 
•  acquaints  us  with  no  events,  no  persons,  no 
names,  no  definable  periods  of  time.  It  only 
informs  us  that  most  regions  of  the  globe  have 
been  occupied,  at  some  indefinite  remote  time,  by 
nameless  primitive  races,  about  whose  circum- 
stances in  life  and  modes  of  living  we  may  con- 
jecture something,  from  the  works  and  marks 


Introduction 


Historic 
America 


Historic 
Western 
Europe 


Historic 
Egypt  and 
Babylonia 


they  have  left,  but  of  whom  we  learn  nothing 
more. 

That  unrecorded  stage  in  the  life  of  humanity, 
known  only  by  inference  from  its  remains,  and 
described  as  prehistoric,  has  ended  in  different 
countries  at  widely  different  times.  In  America, 
for  example,  there  is  no  present  knowledge  of  any 
recorded  history  prior  to  the  European  discovery; 
but  mysterious  inscriptions  are  found  in  southern 
Mexico  and  in  some  of  the  Central  American 
states  which  many  students  are  striving  to 
decipher,  and  which  may  hereafter  shed  light  on 
a  past  that  is  now  extremely  dark.  In  the  British 
islands,  in  middle  and  northern  France,  in  Ger- 
many and  the  Netherlands,  the  prehistoric  age 
was  ended  only  by  Caesar's  conquests,  nearly  at 
the  beginning  of  our  Christian  era.  On  the  other 
hand,  in  Egypt,  inscriptions  on  stone  have  been 
brought  to  light  lately  which  supply  an  actual 
record  of  historical  names  and  facts  from  a  time 
that  appears  to  be  hardly  less  than  7,000  years 
ago;  and  relics  of  workmanship  from  generations 
far  earlier  have  been  found  in  the  same  marvelous 
land.  Further  eastward,  in  the  valley  of  the 
Euphrates,  excavations  now  in  progress  are  un- 
earthing an  abundance  of  writings,  graven  on 
stone  or  impressed  on  tablets  and  cylinders  of 
baked  clay,  which  tell  of  a  civilization  that  flour- 
ished in  that  Babylonian  region  very  nearly  fifty 
centuries  before  Christ;  and  nothing  yet  dis- 
covered reaches  back  to  a  prehistoric  time  when 
no  form  of  writing  was  known.    This  great  exten- 


Historic  and  Prehistoric  Knowledge  3 

sion  backward  of  known  records  has  occurred  in  Archaeoiog- 
both  Egypt  and  Babylonia  within  a  few  recent  ration 
years,  as  the  result  of  patient,  careful  and  costly 
labor  in  uncovering  the  long  buried  ruins  of 
ancient  cities  in  the  east.  Similar  labors  are  bear- 
ing nearly  or  quite  as  rich  fruits  in  other  parts  of 
the  eastern  world,  bringing  to  light  many  monu- 
ments and  much  writing  that  is  older  by  far  than 
scholars  had  believed  to  exist.  Thus  the  line  of 
division  between  prehistorical  and  historical 
knowledge  of  the  past  is  not  to  be  looked  upon  as 
fixed  for  any  region  of  the  earth  until  every  pos- 
sible hiding  place  of  decipherable  writing  has  been 
explored.  So  far  as  now  appears,  there  is  nothing 
to  encourage  searching  in  western  Europe  or  in 
America  for  records  older  than  those  known 
already;  but  almost  everywhere  in  Asia,  in 
northern  and  eastern  Africa,  and  in  southeastern 
Europe,  the  probabilities  of  continued  success  in 
such  quests  are  very  great. 

The  Paleolithic  Stage  of  Culture 

The  oldest  traces  of  man,  wherever  found, 
show  him  in  a  state  which  corresponds  to  that  of 
the  lower  savages  of  the  present  day.  Through 
what  still  ruder  stages  of  existence,  prolonged 
through  what  stretches  of  time,  he  may  have  been  Geikie.iV- 
passing  before  any  durable  traces  of  his  life  be-  ^pe 
came  marked  on  the  earth,  is  a  subject  of  specula- 
tion that  will  not  be  taken  up  here.  It  is  plain 
that  he  could  leave  no  signs  of  his  existence  behind 
him  until  he  had  learned  to  make  something, 


Introduction 


Flint- 
working 


Antiquity 
of  man 


Primitive 
invention 
and  art 


marked  plainly  with  his  handiwork,  and  not  sub- 
ject to  quick  decay  nor  easily  destroyed.  The 
learning  of  that  primitive  lesson  appears  to  have 
happened  everywhere  in  about  the  same  way.  It 
began  with  the  discovery  that  flints  and  other 
stones  might  be  chipped  and  splintered  into  use- 
ful forms  for  cutting,  scraping,  and  the  like,  or 
into  weapons  with  deadly  edges  and  points.  A 
flint  spear-head,  perhaps,  was  one  of  the  earliest 
products  of  this  great  discovery.  Later,  possibly 
by  centuries,  came  the  invention  of  the  bow,  and 
the  tipping  of  its  arrows  with  flint.  By  that  time 
many  simple  arts  would  most  likely  have  been 
attained,  but  practiced  on  materials  that  per- 
ished, for  the  most  part,  very  soon,  while  the 
products  of  the  flint-working  endured.  Hence  it 
is  that  the  surviving  tokens  of  primeval  mankind 
are  chiefly  in  weapons,  implements  and  utensils  of 
flint  and  other  stones.  These  are  found  in  all 
parts  of  the  world,  so  buried  in  deposits  of  gravel, 
or  in  the  stalagmite  floors  of  caves, — often  min- 
gled with  the  bones  of  extinct  animals, — that 
geologists  incline  to  estimate  their  antiquity  by 
hundreds  of  thousands  of  years. 

From  their  first  rude  working  of  flints,  these 
men  of  the  primeval  world  went  on  to  the  making 
of  such  implements  as  needles,  awls,  daggers,  fish- 
hooks and  harpoon  heads  out  of  bone,  horn  and 
ivory,  leaving  specimens  which  show  an  increas- 
ing skill,  and  a  slow  progress  in  the  invention  of 
new  tools  and  utensils,  giving  proof  of  a  growing 
consciousness  of  wants  and  a  growing  ambition  to 


Primitive  Arts  and  Inventions  5 

find  means  for  satisfying  such  wants.  Strangely, 
too,  they  were  developing  a  remarkable  artistic 
sense,  displayed  in  surprisingly  well  drawn  pic- 
tures of  animals,  etched  or  engraved  on  pieces  of 
horn  and  tusk. 

These  things,  found  together,  in  deposits  which 
can  be  arranged  geologically  in  their  order  of  suc- 
cession, and  approximately  in  time,  represent, 
beyond  a  reasonable  doubt,  a  state  of  culture  that 
prevailed  for  an  immensely  long  period,  the  an- 
tiquity of  the  beginning  of  which  can  only  be 
guessed.  It  is  the  period  which  archaeologists 
have  agreed  to  call  the  "paleolithic"  or  "old 
stone"  age  of  human  culture,  when  men,  having  The  Old 
knowledge  of  no  better  material  than  stone  for  StoneAse 
tools  and  weapons,  had  not  yet  learned  to  smooth 
or  polish  the  stone,  but  only  chipped  it  into  shape. 
The  grinding  of  their  stone  implements  to  a 
smooth  surface  and  a  more  perfect  form  was  a  late 
improvement,  and  has  been  taken  to  mark  the 
introduction  of  another  epoch  in  the  education  of 
primitive  men,  called  the  "neolithic"  or  "new  TheNew 

,,  Stone  Age 

stone     age. 

The  deposits  in  which  remains  of  paleolithic 
men  are  found  belong  to  the  geological  period 
called  pleistocene  or  quaternary.  It  was  the 
period  in  which  the  surface  of  the  earth  acquired 
substantially  its  present  features,  seas,  continents 
and  islands  passing  through  a  long  series  of  exten- 
sive changes,  resulting,  at  the  end,  in  very  nearly 
their  present  forms.  At  some  stage  of  those 
changes  the  Mediterranean  appears  to  have  been 


6  Introduction 

bridged  at  some  points  by  elevations  of  land 
which  joined  Europe  to  Africa;  the  British 
islands  were  united  in  like  manner  to  the  con- 
tinent; the  Channel  and  the  North  Sea  must, 
practically,  have  disappeared.  Extraordinary 
climatic  changes  were  occurring  at  the  same  time. 
Ages  of  arctic  cold,  in  northwestern  Europe  and 
northeastern  America,  alternated  with  ages  of 
Glacial  and  more   genial   warmth    than    those    regions    have 

interglacial  .  ° 

periods  known  since.  In  the  latter  time,  plants  and 
animals  from  tropical  Africa  spread  northwards 
into  Europe,  as  far,  at  least,  as  to  southern  Eng- 
land and  northern  France.  In  the  former,  arctic 
animals  and  plants  were  spread  southwards  to  the 
Pyrenees.  Numerous  remains  of  animals  brought 
by  each  of  these  alternating  movements  into 
France,  England,  and  elsewhere, — the  lion,  hy- 
ena, elephant,  hippopotamus,  rhinoceros,  mam- 
moth, bear,  musk-sheep,  glutton,  reindeer,  urus, 
and  others,  some  of  them  extinct  long  ago, — are 
found  mixed  with  the  relics  of  paleolithic  men, 
showing  that  the  latter  lived  through  some  if  not 
all  of  that  long  lasting  glacial  and  interglacial 
time.  It  is  supposed  that  they  retreated  south- 
wards during  the  ages  when  northern  and  middle 
Europe  was  covered  with  glacial  ice,  and  returned 
with  the  returning  warmth. 

The  Neolithic  Stage  of  Culture 

According  to  geological  indications,  all  tokens 
of  the  paleolithic  stage  of  primitive  culture  disap- 
pear, in  the  European  part  of  the  world,  at  about 


The  Glacial  Periods  and  After  \ 

the  time  of  the  ending  of  the  last  glacial  age. 
Then,  in  post-glacial  deposits,  relics  of  that  next 
stage  of  culture  called  neolithic  begin  to  show 
themselves,  rarely  mixed  with  even  the  slightest 
traces  of  paleolithic  remains.    Many  students  of 
the  subject  are  convinced  that  the  two  epochs 
called  paleolithic  and  neolithic  were  separated  in 
western  Europe  by  a  considerable  period  of  time; 
that  the  people  whose  remains  mark  the  former 
were  expelled  or  became  extinct,  and  were  suc- 
ceeded by  a   new  race,   more   advanced,  which 
came  in  from  the  southeast  or  the  south.    Others, 
including  Professor  Huxley,  whose  opinion  carries  Huxley, 
great  weight,  question  the  sufficiency  of  the  proof  ^j^f 
of  such  a  break  in  the  prehistoric  life  of  man  in  7:318 
western  Europe,  and  incline  to  believe  that  the 
men  who  chipped  their  stone  implements  into 
shape  were  the  ancestors  of  the  men  who  ground 
and  polished  them,  and  who  had  made  progress  in 
other  ways. 

Of  the  presence  of  man  immediately  after  the 
ending  of  the  glacial  epoch, — at  the  beginning, 
that  is,  of  the  chapter  in  geological  history  called 
"Recent," — the  tokens  are  abundant  almost 
everywhere.  The  earth  had  then  received  sub- 
stantially the  features  and  the  climate  of  to-day, 
and  the  distribution  of  animals  and  plants  was 
much  the  same  as  now.  Whatever  the  fact  else- 
where, Europe  in  general  is  found  then  to  have 
been  inhabited  by  men  who  had  risen  out  of  the 
paleolithic  depth  of  savagery,  but  who  knew  of 
nothing  better  for  tools  and  weapons  than  stone. 


8 


Introduction 


Neolithic 
arts  and 
culture 


Dolmen 
structures 


That  they  ground  their  stone  implements  to 
smooth  surfaces  and  edges  is  but  one  trifling  mark 
of  the  progress  they  had  made.  They  had  learned 
to  obtain  fire  at  will,  by  the  striking  of  flints  or  the 
friction  of  wood.  They  were  learning  the  arts  of 
the  potter  and  the  weaver;  were  beginning  to  till 
the  earth;  had  domesticated  some  animals;  were 
living  in  communities  together;  were  construct- 
ing dwellings  for  themselves,  and  were  carefully 
burying  their  dead.  The  graves  in  which  some  of 
their  dead  were  entombed,  with  the  body  inclosed 
in  a  case  or  chamber,  formed  of  several  flat  stones 
placed  loosely  together,  are  the  commonest  and 
most  interesting  of  the  memorials  they  have  left. 
Most  of  those  ancient  graves  are  covered  with  a 
heap  of  stones  or  earth,  forming  what  is  called  a 
barrow  or  cairn.  In  frequent  instances,  however, 
the  covering  mound  has  disappeared,  and  the  rude 
stone  burial-cell  is  exposed.  In  this  state  it  is 
known  as  a  cromlech  or  dolmen  (signifying  table- 
stone).  Such,  at  least,  is  the  probable  origin  of 
the  great  number  of  dolmen  structures  that  are 
found  in  southern,  western,  and  northern  Europe, 
in  northern  Africa,  and  in  Asia  over  large  parts  of 
the  southwest.  But  all  are  not  held  to  be  the 
work  of  neolithic  men.  The  same  modes  of  burial, 
with  construction  improved  and  chambers  elabo- 
rated, were  continued  beyond  the  stone  age  of 
culture,  after  metals  had  come  into  use. 

In  the  Alpine  regions  of  Switzerland,  northern 
Italy,  and  southern  Germany,  there  are  prehis- 
toric remains  of  a  most  interesting  class,  known 


Remains  of  Early  Man  in  Europe  9 

as  lake-dwellings,  which  represent  the  whole 
neolithic  period,  from  its  earliest  to  its  latest 
stage  of  culture,  and  which  carry  the  representa- 
tion farther,  even  down  to  historic  times.  These  dwellings 
habitations  were  constructed  on  piles  in  the  shal- 
low shore-waters  of  the  mountain  lakes,  which 
gave  them  a  certain  degree  of  protection  from 
human  enemies  and  wild  beasts.  In  the  mud  of 
the  lake-bottoms  where  they  stood,  all  the  refuse 
of  the  household,  and  all  the  many  things  that  fell 
by  accident  into  the  waters,  were  caught  and 
kept,  and  furnish  now  a  perfect  museum  of  the 
equipments  of  that  lacustrine  life,  from  its  first 
century  to  its  last. 

The  duration  of  the  neolithic  period  of  human 
development  varied,  evidently,  in  different  re- 
gions, and  was  less,  at  the  most,  than  the  aeons  of 
time  during  which  men  lingered  in  the  so-called 
paleolithic  stage.  Nevertheless,  long  ages  must 
have  passed  before  metals — first  copper  in  its 
natural  state  (of  little  worth  for  practical  purposes 
to  the  primitive  man),  and  then  copper  hardened 
into  bronze  by  an  admixture  of  tin — were  brought  _,    „  ,. 

rp,  ,.  ,  .  ,  ,    The  finding 

into  use.  I  hat  this  occurred  in  countries  beyond  of  metals 
the  Mediterranean  before  any  people  in  Europe 
found  the  metals  secreted  in  their  ores,  appears  to 
be  more  than  probable;  and  formerly  it  was  as- 
sumed that  the  use  of  copper  and  bronze,  followed 
later  by  the  use  of  iron,  came  to  Europe  from  the 
east.  Now  there  is  a  growing  opinion  that  the 
primitive  metallurgy  in  some  parts  of  Europe  was 
an  art  independently  acquired.    It  made  its  way 


io  Introduction 

from  one  to  another  people,  as  trading  between 
them  was  developed,  and  may  not  have  reached 
the  British  islands  and  the  northern  extremities 
of  the  continent  very  long  before  the  opening  to 
them  of  the  historic  era.  Iron  was  unknown  in 
America  before  the  coming  of  the  Europeans;  but 
the  more  advanced  of  the  native  races  were 
acquainted  with  copper  and  bronze,  tin,  lead, 
silver  and  gold. 

Divisions  of  the  Human  Race 

Ethnologists  find  reason  to  believe  that  the 
variations  in  the  human  species,  which  produced 
the  different  stocks  or  families  of  mankind  now 
peopling  the  earth,  had  their  genesis  as  far  back 
in  geologic  time  as  the  paleolithic  period,  and 
were  evolved  before  the  neolithic  stage  had  been 
Keane,   %     reached  in  any  part  of  the  world.    Singular  differ- 

Ethnology,  f         .    .  r  i     i  j     •  1 

ch.  8-10       ences  ol  opinion  are  round,  however,  and  singular 

changes  of  view  have  occurred,  as  to  what  is  and 

what  is  not  fundamental  in  the  variations  of  the 

human  race.     Color  was  accepted  first,  without 

question,  as  the  basis  of  classification,  and  all 

humanity  was  divided  into  five  great  families, 

Classifica-     namely:  the  white  or  pale-skinned  peoples,  called 

bgcolor6"  Caucasians;      the    yellow-skinned    Asiatics,     or 

Mongolians;    the  blacks  of  central  Africa  and  of 

some  South  Sea  islands;    the  red  aborigines  of 

America,    and   the   brown   Malayans   of   south- 

Ciassifica-     eastern   Asia    and    the    contiguous    seas.      Then 

la^Tua'e      attention  was  turned  to  relationships  of  language, 

which  seemed  to  have  more  meaning  than  f\e 


Theories  of  Racial  Difference  ii 

differing  colors  of  skin.     Philology,  for  a  time, 
took  ethnology  in  hand,  and  grouped  the  peoples 
of  the  globe  by  their  speech.    It  found  one  great 
growth  of  language  in  Europe  and  parts  of  Asia, 
branching  into  many  variants,  but  carrying  the 
same  structural  form  into  all;    and  this  Aryan  Aryan 
form  of  speech,  as  the  philologists  named  it,  was    anguages 
taken  for  a  mark  of  kinship  among  the  many 
peoples  to  whose  tongues  it  belonged.     Another 
such  development  of  varied  languages  having  one 
structural  form  was  found  in  southwestern  Asia, 
and   called   Semitic,   because   supposed   to   have 
sprung  from  the  speech  of  the  children  of  Shem;  Semitic 
while  a  third,  very  doubtfully  distinguished  from  lan8uases 
it,    was    traced    in    the    neighboring    regions    of 
Africa,  and  attributed  to  an  origin  in  the  family 
of  Ham.    The  languages  in  these  three  divisions — 
Aryan,   Semitic  and  Hamitic — are  alike  in  the  Hamitk 
grammatical  feature  called  "inflection,"  and  con-  lansuages 
trasted  thereby  with  a  greater  multitude  of  so- 
called    "agglutinative"    languages,    which    were 
classed  together  as  Turanian  in  the  older  philo-  Turanian 

....  languages 

logical  schemes. 

Languages  of  the  Aryan  group  include  the 
Sanscrit  and  the  Zend  (with  all  that  came  from 
them  in  ancient  and  modern  India  and  Iran,)  the 
noble  speech  of  the  Greeks,  the  Latin  of  Rome, 
and  the  many  tongues  of  all  the  nations  known  as 
Celtic,  Teutonic  and  Slavic  in  modern  times.  A 
generation  ago  there  was  almost  no  questioning  of 
the  theory  of  a  common  ancestry  for  the  peoples  The  Aryan 
— Hindus,    Medes,    Persians,    Greeks,    Romans,    ypot  esis 


12  Introduction 

Italians,  Frenchmen,  Spaniards,  Germans,  Scan- 
dinavians, Dutchmen,  Englishmen,  Welshmen, 
Irishmen,  Scots,  Russians,  Poles,  and  others, — 
whose  languages  grew  plainly  from  the  common 
roots  of  Aryan  speech.  They  were  looked  upon 
as  forming  one  great  Indo-European  or  Indo- 
Germanic  family  of  mankind,  apart  from  other 
families,  and  dominant  among  them  by  virtue  of 
some  superior  quality  of  race.  There  was  dispu- 
tation only  concerning  the  primitive  Aryan  home, 
where  the  great  race  was  cradled,  and  whence  it 
was  supposed  to  have  swarmed  forth,  in  succes- 
sive hosts,  at  long  intervals,  to  acquire  in  different 
lands  the  different  characteristics  of  the  Hindu, 
pSve  the  Greek,  the  Roman,  the  Celt,  the  German  and 
Aryan  the  Slav.  For  a  time  there  was  general  agreement 
with  Professor  Max  Miiller,  who  thought  it  pos- 
sible to  trace  the  Aryas  of  antiquity  to  a  first 
dwelling  place  on  the  high  plains  at  the  north  of 
the  Hindu  Kush  mountains;  but  other  philolo- 
gists found  reasons  equally  cogent  for  looking 
elsewhere,  in  northern  or  eastern  Europe,  especi- 
ally; and  now  there  appears  to  be  little  hope  of 
tracking  the  Aryan  tongues  to  their  primal 
source. 

Gradually,  the  whole  theory  of  the  undertaking 
to  find  relationships  of  race  by  relationships  of 
language  was  shaken  by  many  criticisms.  The 
large  and  uncertain  extent  to  which  languages 
have  been  spread  in  some  cases  and  extinguished 
in  others,  by  conquest,  or  by  intermixture  of 
peoples,   was   taken   more   into   account.      New 


Cranial  Form  13 

schools  of  anthropology  and  ethnology  have  been 
breaking  away  from  the  philological  influence, 
and  looking  to  physical  features  once  more  for  the 
marks  of  racial  kinship.  In  some  views  the  color 
of  skin  has  regained  more  significance,  especially 
as  connected  with  the  color  of  eyes  and  the  color 
and  texture  of  hair,  in  differentiating  the  pale- 
skinned  peoples  into  blondes  and  brunettes. 

But  anthropological  studies  are  now  attentive 
mainly  to  differences  of  form  in  the  human  skull.  Classifica" 
The  difference  most  marked   and  chiefly  dealt  forms  of 
with  by  the  majority  of  anthropologists  is  that  sku11 
which  appears  in  the  length  of  skull  compared 
with  its  breadth.     By  adopting  a  fixed  rule  of 
comparative    measurement,    denoting    what    is 
called  the  "cephalic  index,"  those  who  pursue 
these  cranial  investigations  in  many  countries  are 
accumulating  statistical  data  from  which  inter- 
esting conclusions,  not  always  in  harmony,  are 
drawn.     The  "cephalic  index"  of  a  head  is  the 
percentage  of  its  breadth  above  the  ears  to  its 
length  from  forehead  to  back.     Those  heads  in 
which  the  percentage  rises  above  80  are  termed  Long  heads 
br  achy  cephalic,  or  broad-heads;   those  in  which  it  ^"adsr° 
falls  below  75  are  called  dolichocephalic,  or  long- 
heads;    the    intermediate    measurement    is    de- 
scribed as  mesocephalic.     Almost  every  popula- 
tion  contains   more   or   less   of   long-heads    and 
broad-heads  in  intermixture;  but  one  or  the  other 
seems  natively  predominant,   always,  and  with 
marked  appearances  of  some  meaning  in  the  fact. 

Among  the  conclusions  drawn  from  the  present 


H 


Introduction 


The  Doli- 
chocephalic 
peoples 


The 

Brachio- 
cephalic 
peoples 


Black  and  j 
white  long 
heads 


European 
blondes  and 
brunettes 


Coloring 
causes 


showing  of  anthropological  statistics,  the  most 
important,  perhaps,  are  these: — 

That  the  long  form  of  head  prevailed  among  the 
primitive  inhabitants  of  Europe;  that  it  prevailed 
among  the  Semitic  and  Hamitic  peoples  of  an- 
tiquity and  among  the  ancient  Greeks  and 
Romans;  and  that  it  is  prevalent  now  (among  the 
natives)  in  Africa,  Australia,  the  Melanesian 
islands,  southern  Asia,  southern  Italy,  Spain, 
northern  Germany,  Scandinavia  and  the  British 
islands. 

That  the  broad  or  rounded  form  of  head  is 
prevalent  in  central  and  eastern  Europe  and 
throughout  most  of  Asia,  north  of  the  Himalayan 
and  connected  mountain  ranges. 

That  no  special  association  of  head-forms  with 
skin  colors  is  discoverable,  unless  in  the  fact  that 
broad  heads  and  yellow  skins  go  together  in  the 
Asiatic  world;  but  the  blackest  of  Africans  and 
the  blondest  of  Europeans  are  equally  of  the  long- 
headed type. 

That  blondness  and  brunetness  in  Europe 
(skin,  eyes,  and  hair  all  considered)  are  graduated 
by  latitude, — the  former  most  marked  in  the 
north,  the  latter  in  the  south;  but  the  brunette 
type  prevails  in  central  Europe,  where  the  people 
with  broad  heads  are  most  numerous. 

That  all  differences  of  color,  in  skin,  eyes  and 
hair,  had  their  probable  origin  in  external  influ- 
ences, acting  upon  numberless  generations, 
through  vast  periods  of  time,  and  that  climatic 
temperature,  as  affected  by  latitude,  altitude  and 


Skin-Color  15 

humidity,   has    been   the    chiefly   potent    cause. 

From  such  data  as  these,  various  hypotheses 
concerning  the  prehistoric  origin  or  composition 
of   the    historic   peoples    of   Europe    have    been 
framed.     On   one   hypothesis,   the   blondes   and  Blonde  and 
brunettes  of  the  present  European  population  are  the"reytte 
supposed  to  represent  two  stocks  or  two  branches 
of  a  stock  that  existed  once  in  entire  separation, 
but   which    have    become    greatly    commingled, 
especially    in    southern    Germany,    Switzerland, 
Belgium,  and  northern  and  central  France.     It  Huxley, 
supposes  the  people  of  the  brunette  type  to  have  gfljf 
been   the   older   inhabitants,    and    those   of   the  7:270 
blonde  type  to  have  been  later  comers — invaders 
probably   from   the    southeast — who   brought   a 
higher  culture,  and  who  brought  the  modes  of 
speech  called  Aryan  by  our  modern  philologists, 
which  became  in  time  the  speech  of  all,  both 
brunettes  and  blondes,  but  varied  in  different 
regions,  reached  by  different  movements  of  the 
invading  race.  In  this  view  the  European  peoples, 
within  historic  times,  have  been  generally  the 
product  of  a  mixture  of  two  older  stocks,  with  a 
greater  present  purity  of  blood  on  the  side  of  the 
blonde  stock  in  the  north  and  on  that  of  the  bru- 
nette stock  in  the  south. 

Another  hypothesis,  based  substantially  on  the 
"cephalic  index,"  leads  to  the  same  belief  in  an 
early  fusion  of  two  races,  but  reverses  conclusions 
as  to  which  parts  of  Europe  retained  most  of  the 
aboriginal  stock  and  which  were  surrendered  most 
fully  to  the  invasion.     It  assumes  that  western 


i6 


Introduction 


Long  head 
and  broad 
head 
theory 


Ripley, 
Races  of 
Europe 
p.  467  and 
others 


Sergi's 
cranial 
theory 


Europe  was  occupied,  extensively,  if  not  wholly, 
in  the  stone  age,  by  a  race  of  the  dolichocephalic 
or  long-headed  type,  which  came  into  it  from 
Africa;  that  the  existing  blonde  long-headed 
Teutonic  race  of  northern  Europe  represents  one 
variety  of  that  aboriginal  stock,  and  the  brunette 
long-headed  peoples  on  both  shores  of  the  Medi- 
terranean, in  Europe  and  Africa,  represent  an- 
other variety;  that  another  race,  of  the  brachy- 
cephalic  or  broad-headed  type,  and  Asiatic  in  its 
affinities,  came  later  into  the  western  European 
field,  mastered  its  middle  regions,  and  were  in 
fact  the  people  known  as  Celts;  that  others  of  the 
same  type,  remaining  in  eastern  Europe,  are  rep- 
resented by  the  modern  Slavs.  This  theory, 
which  Africanizes  the  Teutonic  peoples  and 
breaks  them  from  all  relationship  to  Asian  Slavs 
and  Celts,  leaves  the  relationship  of  languages 
unexplained. 

A  third  hypothesis  coincides  with  this  second 
one  in  part,  but  starts  from  different  premises. 
Its  author  and  main  supporter,  Professor  Sergi,  is 
convinced  that  cranial  forms  are  infallible  marks 
of  race;  but  the  differences  to  which  he  looks  are 
not  so  simple  as  those  between  long  and  broad 
heads.  He  has  elaborated  a  classification  of 
forms  —  ovoid,  ellipsoid,  pentagonoid,  etc. — 
which  are  guides,  he  maintains,  to  an  unquestion- 
able determination  of  all  affinities  of  race.  The 
main  conclusions  to  which  they  guide  him  are 
these:  That  the  whole  basin  of  the  Mediterranean 
was  occupied  in  neolithic  times,  and  more  or  less 


Various  Hypotheses  17 

in  the  paleolithic  period,  by  peoples  of  one  stock, 
which  had  its  origin  in  Africa,  probably  in  the 
region  of  the  great  African  lakes;  that  the  ancient 
Egyptians  and  Libyans,  of  North  Africa,  and  the 
Iberians,  Ligurians,  Etruscans,  and  Pelasgians,  of 
primitive  Spain,  Italy  and  Greece,  were  all  from 
that  common  stock,  and  formed,  together,  a 
"Mediterranean  race;"  that  central  and  north- 
ern Europe  was  peopled  by  a  branch  of  the  same; 
that  these  primitive  "Eurafricans,"  as  they  are  Eurafricans 
styled,  were  subjugated,  but  not  supplanted,  by 
invasions  of  more  barbarous  peoples  from  Asia, — 
from  the  family  of  the  Aryas — with  whom  they 
became  mixed  in  varying  proportions,  and  whose  Sergi,  The 
language  they  adopted  with  varying  modifications  nifnTJe 
and  transformations,  producing  the  Greek,  Latin, 
Celtic,    Germanic    and    Slavonic    nations    and  BHnton, 

t  .  .  .        .  Races  and 

tongues  OI  historic  times.  Peoples, 

That  these  questions  of  race  and  racial  origin  lects  4"5 
can  ever  be  taken  out  of  the  region  of  speculation 
and  controversy,  and  brought  to  rest  on  accepted 
grounds    of    scientific    research    and    reasoning, 
appears  now  to  be  a  matter  of  grave  doubt. 


HISTORIC  EPOCHS 


THE  EPOCH  OF  EARLIEST  CIVILIZA- 
TIONS AND  KNOWN  EMPIRES 

(TO  THE  PERSIAN  INVASIONS  OF  GREECE) 


CHIEF    CHARACTERS    OF   THE    FIRST    EPOCH 

CHAPTER  I 

FROM   THE    EARLIEST    KNOWN    RECORDS    TO     THE     SUP- 
POSED   AGE    OF    ABRAHAM 

CHAPTER  II 

FROM  THE  SUPPOSED  AGE  OF  ABRAHAM  TO  THE  DEATH 

OF    DAVID 

CHAPTER  III 

FROM  THE  DEATH  OF  DAVID  TO  THE  ADVENT   OF    CYRUS 

CHAPTER  IV 

FROM  THE  ADVENT  OF  CYRUS  TO  THE 
AGE  OF  XERXES 


,  CHIEF    CHARACTERS   OF   THE 
FIRST   EPOCH 

The  unique  distinction  of  being  the  first  of  all 
men  to  be  named  to  us,  not  by  the  voice  of  tradi- 
tion, but  by  writing  done  in  his  own  day,  seems  to 
belong    either   to   Mena,    the   first   pharaoh   of  Menaand 
Egypt,  or  to  one  En-shag-kush-ana,  who  reigned  kush-ana 
in  the  lower  part  of  the  valley  of  the  Euphrates  B-  c- *8o° 
and  Tigris    rivers    at   an   extremely   early   day, 
styling  himself  "Lord  of  Kengi."    Clearer  knowl- 
edge and  further  discovery  of  primitive  inscrip- 
tions may  take  this  peculiar  distinction  from  both. 

If  recent  computations  of  Egyptian  chronology 
are  approximately  correct,  an  interval  of  about 
eight  centuries  lies  between  Mena  and  the  pha- 
raoh Khufu  (the  Cheops  of  the  Greeks),  who,  by 
the  building  of  the  "great  pyramid"  of  Gizeh,  b.  C4000 
may  be  said  to  have  been  the  first  of  men  to  leave  370O(,) 
an  enduring  mark  of  himself  and  his  work,  suf- 
ficiently notable  to  give  fame  to  his  name. 

In  the  other  valley-field  of  primitive  history, 
where  the  Tigris  and  Euphrates  flow  together,  the 
first  conspicuous  figure  to  be  lighted  up  by  con- 
temporary records  is  Shargina  or  Sargon,  who 
appears  to  have  been  the  pioneer  of  empire-  |ar^n 
making  in  that  part  of  the  world.  38oo(?) 

A  character  of  much  more  interest  than  these 
is  brought  to  our  acquaintance  next,  by  the  pres- 
ervation of  the  oldest  known  book  in  the  world, — 

21 


22  Chief  Characters  of  the  First  Epoch 

a  book  of  moral  precepts,  dating  from  about  3  500 
Ptah-hetep  j$    q     jts  author,  Ptah-hetep,  or  Ptah-hotep,  is 
35oo(?)        identified  by  his  name  with  a  family  of  high  rank, 
whose  tomb,  at  Saqqareh,  is  described  and  illus- 
trated with  elaboration  in  two  volumes  of  the 
publications  of  the  Archceological  Survey  of  Egypt. 
One  of  the  portraits  in  the  tomb,  well  preserved, 
is  probably  that  of  the  moralist,  who,  so  far  as  we 
have  knowledge  at  present,  is  the  father  of  all 
literature.      His    "good    sayings,"    as    he   called 
them,  have  been  translated  into  French  and  into 
English,  and  may  be  found  in  one  of  the  volumes 
of  the  Records  of  the  Past,  edited  by  Professor 
Lamed:  a    Sayce.    As  I  have  said  in  another  book,  they  give 

Multitude  of  .  11  1         r      i«  r   in 

Counsellors,  one  who  reads  them  the  feeling  ot     being  mtro- 
p3  duced  to  the  primitive  archetype  of  all  gentle- 

men." They  outline  "  a  standard  of  right  conduct 
which  was  set  before  men  some  centuries  before 
Abraham, — thousands  of  years  before  Homer, — 
before  Athens  had  risen, — before  the  foundations 
of  a  city  were  laid  on  the  seven  hills  of  Rome. 
And  the  standard  set  is  very  high."  "It  will  fit 
no  life  that  is  not  lifted  to  an  elevation  above 
petty  things,  where  the  mind  becomes  tolerant, 
the  spirit  magnanimous,  the  temper  serene." 

Not  long  after  the  time  of  Ptah-hetep  the  light 

of  history  became  dimmed,  by  some  cause,  in  both 

of  the  remarkable  valleys  where  it  was  kindled 

first,  and  no  personage  of  marked  eminence  is 

Ham-  revealed  to  us  for  more  than  a  thousand  years. 

murabi        Then    Hammurabi    emerges, — founder    of    the 

22oo(?)        greatness  of  Babylon, — organizer  of  the  civilizing 


Chief  Characters  of  the  First  Epoch  23 

Babylonian  influence  that  irradiated  all  western 
Asia  thereafter, — legislator  of  the  oldest  known 
code  of  laws, — first,  perhaps,  among  those  that 
we  know,  who  can  with  justice  be  called  "epoch- 
making  men." 

That  Hammurabi,  of  Babylon,  is  identical  with 
the  "king  of  Shinar"  called  Amraphel  in  the 
Bible  appears  to  be  a  well  determined  fact.  Hence 
he  was  contemporary  with  Abraham,  and  the 
time  of  Abraham  is  thus  ascertained  more  nearly 
than  it  could  be  before  the  records  of  Hammurabi 
were  found.  Our  knowledge  of  the  latter  is  his- 
torical, in  the  strictest  sense,  because  it  comes 
direct  from  Hammurabi's  own  time,  in  inscrip-  Abraham 
tions  found  lately  in  Babylonia  and  Elam;    but  B- c- 

.  2200(?) 

what  we  know  of  Abraham  is  at  second  hand,  and 
remotely  so,  through  Hebrew  traditions  that 
were  not  put  into  writing  till  a  far  later  time. 
There  is  no  reason,  however,  for  doubting  the 
substantial  authenticity  of  the  story  of  Abraham 
and  his  migration  to  Canaan  from  the  Babylonian 
city  of  Ur. 

From  Hammurabi  and  Abraham  to  the  next 
figure  of  distinct  prominence  in  history  there  is 
another  long  interval,  of  six  centuries  or  more. 
Egypt  then  recovers  her  historical  importance, 
under  a  succession  of  vigorous  pharaohs,  the  most 
notable  of  whom,  Tahutimes  or  Thothmes  I.  and 
III.,  were  the  first  to  undertake  careers  of  con-  Thothmes 
quest  in  countries  eastward  from  the  Nile.  The  L  and  IIL 
empire  won  by  Thothmes  III.  stretched  far  into  15th' 


cen- 


Asia,  and  was  the  largest  that  the  Egyptians  ever  tunes(?) 


2i 


Chief  Characters  of  the  First  Epoch 


Amenhotep 
IV.  B.  C. 
15th  cen-   , 
tury  (?) 


Ramses  II. 
B.  C.  14th- 
13th  centu- 
ries (?) 


Merenptah 


ruled.  Among  the  many  monuments  he  left  were 
the  two  famous  obelisks  now  standing  in  London 
and  New  York,  which  he  placed  at  Heliopolis, 
originally,  and  dedicated  to  the  god  Turn. 

Interest  of  another  kind  attaches  to  the  great- 
great-grandson  of  Thothmes  III.,  who  came  to 
the  throne  as  Amenhotep  IV.,  but  changed  his 
name  to  Akh-en-Aten,  or  Khu-n-Aten,  in  conse- 
quence of  a  change  in  his  religious  beliefs.  Ap- 
parently he  was  a  reformer,  of  the  most  radical 
and  independent  type,  not  only  renouncing  .the 
Egyptian  gods  and  devoting  his  worship  to  the 
sun,  but  striving  to  bring  his  subjects  to  the 
acceptance  of  certain  moral  conceptions,  adverse 
to  war,  opposed  to  conventionalities  in  life  and 
art,  favorable  to  truth  and  nature,  and  indicative 
generally  of  fine  feeling  and  exalted  thought. 
That  he  had  a  troubled  reign,  and  did  not  succeed 
in  reforming  Egypt  or  ending  war,  hardly  needs 
to  be  said. 

In  the  next  Egyptian  dynasty  we  come  upon 
the  famous  pharaoh  who  oppressed  the  Children 
of  Israel,  Ramses  II.  (the  Sesostris  of  the  Greeks), 
all  the  many  monuments  and  memorials  of  whose 
reign  give  evidence  of  a  vainglorious,  ambitious, 
energetic,  and  hard-handed  monarch,  precisely  as 
represented  in  the  Hebrew  story.  His  mummy, 
in  a  well-preserved  state,  was  found  in  1881.  That 
he  was  the  pharaoh  of  "the  oppression"  is  hardly 
doubted;  that  his  son  Merenptah  was  the  pha- 
raoh of  "the  exodus"  of  Israel  is  probable,  but 
less  sure. 


Ptah-hetep 

From  the  Tomb  at  Saqqareh 


Thothmes  III 

From  the  Statue  in  the  Turin  Museum 


Amenhotep  IV 

From  the  Statue  in  the  Louvre 


Ramses  II 

From  the  Temple  at  Heracleopolis 


Chief  Characters  of  the  First  Epoch  25 

And  now  the  stage  of  ancient  history  is  lighted 
more  distinctly  for  us  by  the  opening  of  the  He- 
brew annals,  and  widens  to  receive  the  actors  who 
are  made  most  familiar  to  us  by  the  best  known  Moses 
of  all  books.  Moses  comes  on  the  scene,  a  noble  B"  ?' I3,^* 
and  impressive  figure;  leader,  lawgiver,  and  ruler, 
without  title  or  rank;  oracle  and  prophet,  with 
no  priestly  office;  of  all  legislators  and  founders  of 
nations  the  least  in  pretensions,  the  greatest  in 
influence  on  the  future  of  mankind. 

In  character  and  historical  importance  Moses 
ranks  far  above  David,  who  reconstructed  the 
Jewish  nation  politically,  fitting  a  throne  to  its 
theocracy,  and  fashioning  it  more  into  the  like- 
ness of  the  common  despotisms  of  the  ancient 
east;  but  the  mixture  in  David  of  poet,  warrior, 
and  adventurer, — of  the  man  of  sentiment  with 
the  man  of  action,  of  the  reckless  sinner  with  the 
remorseful  penitent,  of  the  life  of  romance  with  b.  c.  10th 
the  career  of  cool  ambition, — has  been  fascinating  century 
to  the  imagination  of  all  ages,  and  has  given  him  a 
preeminence  among  the  heroes  of  Jewish  history 
which  sober  examination  of  his  conduct  and 
character  can  hardly  concede. 

King  Solomon  resembled  David  in  nothing  but  Solomon 
his  practical  capacity  for  government,  which  sur-  B-  c  I0th 

J        1  r     1   •         r      1  ■  •  century 

passed  that  01  his  father  in  some  important 
respects.  He  pursued  a  more  statesmanlike 
policy  of  economic  development  and  peace.  He 
inherited  no  excitability  of  emotion,  no  warmth  of 
temper,  from  the  poet  and  man  of  war.  Cool, 
calculating,    meditative,    self-indulgent,    and    so 


26 


Chief  Characters  of  the  First  Epoch 


r 


Isaiah 
B.  C.  8th 
century 


devoted  a  lover  of  sententious  literature  that 
most  of  the  proverbs  and  maxims  of  the  time 
were  attributed  to  him,  he  was,  no  doubt,  an 
eminently  wise  man,  but  not  the  wisest  of  all 
times. 

To  find  in  Hebrew  history  a  peer  in  greatness  to 
Moses,  we  must  pass  on,  beyond  David  and 
Solomon,  to  the  prophet  Isaiah,  whose  office  and 
service  we  describe  much  better  if  we  call  him  the 
inspired  counselor  of  Judah, — the  orator  of  ora- 
tors,— the  preacher  of  preachers, — statesman, 
poet,  and  apostle  in  one, — who  warned,  rebuked, 
and  admonished  his  nation  with  an  eloquence 
never  heard  from  another  tongue.  Modern  study 
of  the  book  which  bears  Isaiah's  name,  in  the 
Bible,  leads  many  scholars  to  the  conclusion  that 
most,  but  not  all,  of  the  first  thirty-nine  chapters 
are  from  the  great  prophet,  but  that  the  last 
twenty-seven,  together  with  some  of  the  earlier 
ones,  were  added  from  another  source  at  a  later 
day. 

At  the  time  of  Isaiah,  Assyria,  the  northern  off- 
shoot of  Babylonia,  had  risen  to  the  leading  part 
in  oriental  history,  and  the  personal  records  of 
Assyria  give  only  the  words  and  doings  of  kings. 
Royal  warriors,  who  boast  of  wide  conquests 
which  their  successors  seldom  hold,  and  builders 
■  of  grand  temples  and  palaces,  appear  in  plenty: 
Tiglathpilesers  I.  and  III.,  Assurnatsirpal,  Shal- 
manesers  I.  and  II.,  Sargon  the  Later,  Sennach- 
erib, Esarhaddon,  and  others;  but  signs  of 
statesmanship   among  them   appear  to  be  few. 


sers,  Shal 
manesers, 
Sargon,  etc. 
B.  C.i  2th- 
7th  centu- 
ries 


Chief  Characters  of  the  First  Epoch  27 

The  first  Tiglathpileser  shows  capacity  for  more 
than  wanton  devastation  and  slaughter,  by  a 
record  of  systematic  measures  for  improving  the 
products  of  his  kingdom,  in  domestic  animals  and 
plants.  Possibly  the  third  Tiglathpileser  invented 
the  policy  of  transplanting  communities  of  sub- 
jugated peoples  from  one  region  to  another,  which 
brought  about  the  extinction  of  the  ten  tribes  of 
the  kingdom  of  Israel  by  Sargon,  and  the  exile  of 
"all  Jerusalem"  by  Nebuchadnezzar  of  Babylon. 
But  if  Assyria  produced  any  greatness  of  charac- 
ter in  public  or  private  life,  or  contributed  any 
noble  utterance  of  thought  or  song  to  the  world, 
her  surviving  annals  have  made  no  disclosure  of 
the  fact. 

Not  long  after  the  downfall  of  Assyria  western 
Asia  came  under  the  government  of  a  conqueror  £yrus  the 
who  was,  perhaps,  more  eminently  a  statesman  B.  c.  558- 
than  any  who  had  preceded  him  in  the  sover-  529 
eignty  of  that  part  of  the  earth.     The  Greeks, 
who  were  critical  judges  of  political  capacity,  held 
Cyrus  the  Great,  founder  of  the  Persian  empire, 
in    profound    esteem.      "What    other    man    but 
Cyrus,"  exclaims  Xenophon,  who  wrote  an  admir-  cTo°w°'": 
ing  account  of  him,  "after  having  overturned  an  bk.8,ch.i-a 
empire,  ever  died  with  the  title  of  Father  from  the 
people  whom  he  had  brought  under  his  power?" 
After  describing  "the  economy"  of  the  empire 
which  Cyrus  organized,  Xenophon  remarks:    "It 
is  evident,  therefore,  from  all  that  has  been  said, 
that  he  thought  no  one  had  any  business  with 
government  who  was   not   himself  better   than 


28 


Chief  Characters  of  the  First  Epoch 


Zarathush- 
tra   or 
Zoroaster, 
B.  C.  6th 
century(?) 


Gotama, 
the 

Buddha, 
B.  C.  6th 

century 


those  whom  he  governed."  If  this  feeling  ruled 
Cyrus  consistently  he  cannot  have  failed  to  be  one 
of  the  ideal  sovereigns  of  history. 

Among  the  Persians,  at  this  time,  if  not  earlier, 
an  inspiring  literature  was  in  process  of  develop- 
ment from  the  spiritual  teachings  of  Zarathush- 
tra,  or  Zoroaster,  who  reformed  the  primitive 
religion  of  the  Aryas  of  Iran.  Of  the  personality 
of  Zarathushtra  nothing  is  known  with  the  least 
certainty.  He  may  have  lived,  as  some  scholars 
have  concluded,  in  the  tenth  century  before 
Christ;  but,  whatever  his  date,  it  was  in  the  sixth 
century — the  century  of  Cyrus — that  his  spiritual 
influence  became  a  potent  historical  force. 

That  century  was  one  of  extraordinary  moral 
and  religious  awakenings  in  the  eastern  world. 
It  was  the  century  of  the  appearance  of  Gotama, 
the  Buddha,  and  of  Confucius  and  Lao-tsze. 
Among  the  spiritual  teachers  who  have  given  bet- 
ter beliefs  and  purer  ideals  to  great  masses  of 
mankind,  the  Buddha  is  preeminent.  Princely 
by  birth,  he  gave  up  home,  family,  wealth,  and 
luxury  of  living,  to  seek  means  of  escape  from  the 
miseries  of  the  world  and  to  make  them  known. 
Not  many  years  ago,  in  northern  India,  an  in- 
scribed pillar,  erected  in  the  third  century  before 
Christ,  by  the  Buddhist  emperor,  Asoka,  was 
found  marking  the  spot  of  his  birth.  By  another 
inscription  the  place  of  his  burial  was  denoted, 
and  numerous  relics  of  "the  blessed  one,"  found 
there,  in  a  massive  stone  coffer,  were  presented  by 
the  British  government  of  India  to  the  king  of 


Chief  Characters  of  the  First  Epoch  29 

Siam,  with  the  stipulation  that  some  part  of  them 
should  be  shared  with  the  Buddhists  of  Burmah 
and  Ceylon. 

The  great  teachers  of  the  Chinese  were  less  Lao-tsze 
spiritual  than  either  Zarathushtra  or  the  Buddha.  Confucius 
Lao-tsze  was  a  mystic,  whose  mysticism  under-  B-  c- 6th- 

.  /-!<■•  5  th  centu- 

went    senseless    perversions.      Confucius    was    a 


nes 


purely  practical  moralist,  of  the  utilitarian 
school,  with  a  stiff  practicality  and  conservatism 
which  he  planted  ineradicably  in  the  Chinese 
mind.  He  lived  no  sedentary  and  meditative  life, 
but  one  of  activity,  traveling  widely,  holding  vari- 
ous public  offices,  and  mixing  much  with  people 
and  affairs.    He  died  in  478  B.  C. 

Very  different  in  the  quality  of  their  distinction 
are  the  famous  personages  who  meet  us  when  we 
turn  to  the  isles  and  shores  of  the  iEgean,  where 
the  light  of  history  is  now  revealing  the  Greeks. 
Neither  prophets  nor  conquerors  are  on  the  Greek 
stage.  Poets  are  the  first  to  appear,  led  by  the 
blind  Homer,  whose  personality  can  never  be 
questioned  out  of  existence  in  our  minds  by  in- 
genious critics,  who  surmise  that  the  "Iliad"  and 
the  "Odyssey"  came  from  many  bards,  in  poems 
that  were  pieced  finally  together  and  attached  to 
his  single  name.     Whether  as  the  sole  singer  of  Homer 

B.  C.  12th- 

these   grandest   of   hero-songs,    or   as    the    chief  sthcentu- 
singer  of  a  wonderful  choir,  Homer  will  keep  the 
place  that  the  Greeks  assigned  to  him,  as  the 
"Father  of  Poets," — leader  of  the  procession  of 
the  poets  of  all  time. 

Following  early  in  that  line  is  Hesiod,  rhymer 


3° 


Hesiod 
B.  C.  8th 
century(?) 


Archilo- 
chus, 
Pindar, 
Sappho, 
Alcaeus, 
Anacreon 
B.  C.  7th- 
6th  centu- 
ries 


Thales, 
Pythagoras 
B.  C.  7th- 
6th  centu- 
ries 


Lycurgus 
B.  C.  9th 

century(?) 


Solon 
B.  C.  6th 

century 

Cleisthenes 
B.  C.  6th 
century 


Pisistratus 
B.  C.  6th 
century 


Chief  Characters  of  the  First  Epoch 

of  economic  maxims  and  precepts  of  doubtful 
morality.  Later,  by  a  century  and  more,  come 
Archilochus,  oldest  of  Greek  lyric  poets,  and 
apparent  inventor  of  iambic  and  trochaic  meters; 
Pindar,  the  greatest  of  the  lyric  school;  Sappho, 
whom  Plato  called  "the  tenth  muse," — first  of 
her  sex  to  make  a  great  name  in  literature; 
Alcseus,  the  poetical  aristocrat,  and  Anacreon, 
who  sang  of  love  and  wine.  In  the  seventh  and 
sixth  centuries  before  Christ  these  singers  were 
giving  a  purely  artistic  literature  to  the  Greeks. 
In  another  mode  of  art,  ^Esop  was  inventing 
fables,  or  some  Greek  compiler  was  collecting 
fables  under  ^Esop's  name, — if  it  be  the  fact,  as 
suspicious  criticism  conjectures,  that  the  name 
stands  for  a  myth.  In  the  same  remote  centuries 
stand  Thales  and  Pythagoras,  with  whom  science 
and  philosophy  may  almost  be  said  to  begin. 

In  the  public  life  of  the  Greeks  the  front  of 
history  is  not  taken  by  red-handed  warriors,  as 
the  chief  characters  of  their  time  and  country, 
but  by  organizers  and  reformers  of  government, 
like  Lycurgus,  of  Sparta,  about  whom  almost 
nothing  but  his  work  is  known;  like  Solon,  who 
framed  for  the  Athenians  their  first  popular  con- 
stitution; like  Cleisthenes,  who  led  the  revolution 
at  Athens  which  gave  it  a  completely  democratic 
constitution,  after  the  downfall  of  the  tyranny  of 
Pisistratus  and  his  sons.  Even  Pisistratus,  tech- 
nically a  "tyrant,"  was  so  in  no  oriental  sense, 
but  has  claims  to  a  place  of  eminence  among  the 
political  characters  of  the  age. 


Moses 

From  the  Statue  by  Michael  Angelo 


David 

From  Statue  by  Michael  Angelo 


Gotama 

From  a  photograph  of  the  ancient  Statue 


Sappho 

From  a  Bust  in  the  Villa  Albani,  Rome 


Chief  Characters  of  the  First  Epoch  31 

The  Greeks  of  this  epoch  have  their  military 
heroes:  Miltiades,  who  commanded  them  at  Mijtiades^ 
Marathon  against  the  Persian  hosts  of  Darius;  century 
Leonidas  and  his  three  hundred  Spartans,  who  Leon;das 
died  at  Thermopylae,  in  hopeless  defense  of  the  B-  C.  5th 
pass,  against  the  greater  host  of  Xerxes;  Themis- 
tocles,  who,  more  than  all  others,  saved  Athens 
from  the  Persians,  and  who  needed  only  honesty 
to  make  him  one  of  the  greatest  of  the  Greeks; 
Aristides,  who,  with  less  political  sagacity  than 
Themistocles,  opposed  him  in  everything,  yet 
holds  a  better  place  in  history  because  of  the  tocies,B.C. 
moral  qualities  that  gave  him  the  surname  of  sth  century 
"the  Just;"  but  these  are  all  crowned  with  the 
laurels  of  a  brave  patriotism;  they  are  the  heroes, 
not  of  conquest,  but  of  national  defense. 
Throughout  their  history  it  seems  to  be  the  fact 
that  the  Greeks  were  less  dazzled  by  military 
glory  than  most  peoples,  either  ancient  or 
modern,  and  awarded,  at  least  relatively,  a  much 
higher  distinction  to  more  strictly  intellectual 
achievements,  in  statesmanship,  in  philosophy, 
in  literature,  and  in  all  the  finer  arts.  If  civiliza- 
tion could  be  regarded  as  a  product  of  intellectual 
culture  alone,  the  Athenians,  in  their  great  day, 
might  be  called  the  most  highly  civilized  of  all 
communities  in  the  history  of  mankind.  But 
something  of  what,  in  our  day,  we  call  spirituality, 
— susceptibility,  that  is,  to  the  warmer  emotions 
of  religion  and  the  profounder  sense  of  divine 
things,  seems  to  have  been  wanting  in  them,  as  a 
whole;    while  that  which  we  sometimes  describe 


32  Chief  Characters  of  the  First  Epoch 

as  the  "moral  fiber"  of  a  race  was  not  quite  the 
best. 


Lycurgus 

From  a  Bust  in  the  Museum,  Naples 


Sofon 

From  a  Bust  in  the  Museum,  Naples 


Miltlades 

From  a  Bust  in  the  Louvre 


Themistocles 

From  a  Bust  in  the  Vatican 


CHAPTER  I 

FROM  THE  EARLIEST  KNOWN  RECORDS 
TO  THE  SUPPOSED  AGE  OF  ABRAHAM 

(Approximately  B.  C.  4700  to  2200) 
On  the  Nile:  How  Egypt  was  made  by  the  river. — How  its  age  is  told  by 
the  depth  of  the  soil.— Prehistoric  discoveries  of  Professor  Petrie. — Begin- 
ning of  alphabets  and  written  language. — First  decipherment  of  the  hiero- 
glyphics.— -The  Rosetta  Stone. — Manetho's  list  of  the  pharaohs. — Its  recent 
verification. — The  builders  of  the  pyramids. — The  finding  of  the  tombs  of 
the  first  pharaohs  in  1898-9. — Seven  thousand  years  of  Egyptian  history 
now  disclosed. — Religious  ideas  of  the  Egyptians. — High  moral  precepts  of 
Ptah-hetep. — Invasion  and  conquest  of  Egypt  by  the  Hyksos. — Supposed 
time  of  the  visit  of  Abraham.  On  the  Euphrates  and  the  Tigris:  Deep  burial 
of  the  old  civilization  in  the  Mesopotamian  valley. — Dissolution  of  its  clay- 
built  cities. — Wonderful  preservation  of  its  written  memorials  on  tablets 
and  cylinders  of  baked  clay,  in  the  heaps  of  their  ruin. — Modern  excavation. 
— The  cuneiform  writing  and  its  decipherment. — Astonishing  discoveries 
in  recent  years. — American  work  at  Nippur. — Historical  records  from  B.  C. 
4500. — The  Babylonia  of  Abraham's  time. —  The  Sumerian  civilization. — 
Conjectured  connection  of  early  Chinese  civilization  with  the  Sumerian. — 
Rise  of  Babylon  to  supremacy. — Hammurabi,  founder  of  the  Babylonian 
Empire. — His  identification  with  the  Amraphel  of  the  Bible.- — Discovery  of 
his  code  of  laws. — The  Babylonian  legend  of  the  deluge. — Time  of  the  migra- 
tion of  Abraham  from  Babylonia  to  Canaan.  Elsewhere:  Glimpses  of  a 
rising  civilization  in  and  on  the  JEgesm  Sea. — The  Aryan  peoples  of  India 
and  Iran. — Earliest  Chinese  records.    / 

According  to  present  knowledge,  the  first  of 
men  to  pass  out  of  prehistoric  darkness  into  a 
dawning  light  of  history,  by  an  invention  of  the 
alphabets  or  signs  whidri  transform  spoken  into 
written  language,  were  dwellers  in  the  lower  parts 
of  two  remarkable  river  valleys, — the  valley  of  Two 
the  Euphrates  and  the  Tigris  and  the  valley  of 
the  Nile.  The  parts  of  those  valleys  which  they  valleys 
occupied  lie  in  nearly  the  same  latitude,  separated 
by  the  stem,  as  it  may  be  called,  of  the  Arabian 
peninsula,  and  by  the  northern  projections  of  the 
Red  Sea.  In  which  of  them  the  advance  to  a 
literate    civilization,    capable    of    leaving    some 

33 


remarkable 


34  To  the  Supposed  Age  of  Abraham 

record  of  itself,  was  accomplished  first,  and 
whether  it  did  or  did  not  proceed  in  both  from  a 
common  source  or  cause,  are  questions  not  yet 
solved.  Inscriptions  found  lately  on  the  Nile  are 
believed  to  antedate  the  oldest  yet  found  on  the 
Euphrates;  but  there  is  no  precise  certainty  in 
either  dating,  and  earlier  inscriptions  may  yet  be 
brought  to  light.  Meantime,  Egypt  has  preced- 
ence, as  the  country  in  which  the  oldest  of  known 
civilizations  grew  up. 

Egypt 

From  the  depth  of  the  soil  in  the  narrow  valley 
of  the  Nile,   deposited,  as  it  has  been,   by  the 
yearly  floods  of  the  river,  it  is  possible  to  calcu- 
late, with  some  probable  approach  to  correctness, 
Age  of         tne  length  of  time  since  the  valley  became  fit  for 

fertility  in  °  \ 

the  Nile  habitation  by  people  who  had  risen  above  the 
rudest  state  of  life.  Professor  W.  M.  Flinders 
Petrie,  who  has  been  for  some  years  past  the  most 
extensive  and  successful  explorer  of  the  buried 
remains  of  ancient  Egypt,  reckons  that  time  at 
not  more  than  eight  or  nine  thousand  years. 
Writing  in  1900,  he  said:  "The  rate  of  deposit  is 
well  known — very  closely  one  metre  in  a  thousand 
years — and  borings  show  only  eight  metres  thick 
of  Nile  mud  in  the  valley.  Before  that  the 
country  had  enough  rain  to  keep  up  the  volume 
of  the  river,  and  it  did  not  drop  its  mud.  It  must 
have  run  as  a  rapid  stream  through  a  barren  land 
of  sand  and  stones,  which  could  not  support  any 
population  except  paleolithic  hunters.    With  the 


In  the  Valley  of  the  Nile  35 

further  drying  of  the  climate,  the  river  lost  so 

much  velocity  that  its  mud  was  deposited,  and 

the    fertile    mud   flats   made  cultivation   and   a  Petrie,  in 

higher    civilization    possible.       At    this   point  a  Science 

people    already    using    copper    came    into    the  jjf°r*(*(y' 

country." 

Discoveries  made  by  Professor  Petrie  and  other 
recent  explorers  have  now  thrown  remarkable 
light  on  the  life  and  work  of  these  people,  back 
almost  to  the  beginning  of  the  time  thus  com- 
puted. At  least  from  about  six  thousand  years 
before  Christ  it  is  believed  that  the  relics  found 
in  prehistoric  cemeteries  and  towns,  of  pottery 
more  especially,  can  be  traced  in  a  continuous 
sequence,  which  shows  an  improving  art  and  im- 
proving conditions  of  life.  From  the  beginning 
of  the  series  this  pottery  bears  marks  that  are 
similar  to  signs  found  on  prehistoric  pottery  in 
other  parts  of  northern  Africa  and  in  Spain  and 
Crete,  and  which  may  have  borne  meanings  out 
of  which  the  idea  of  alphabets  and  written  Ian-  _,  ,. 

r  Prehistoric 

guage  grew.  Moreover,  the  pottery  patterns  and  Egypt 
decorations  are  said  to  be  somewhat  in  use  to  this 
day  among  the  Algerian  Kabyles.  A  reasonable 
inference  is,  that  when  the  Nile  had  first  spread 
a  narrow  carpet  of  fertile  soil  over  the  rocks  and 
sand  of  its  older  margin,  the  valley  was  entered 
by  a  people  who  had  acquired  already,  some- 
where on  the  western  side  of  the  Libyan  desert,  a 
degree  of  culture  which  raised  them  even  above 
the  neolithic  stage.  It  may  be  possible  hereafter 
to  identify  that  cradle-land  of  Egyptian  civiliza- 


36 


Prehistoric 
arts 


Invention 
of  writing 


To  the  Supposed  Age  of  Abraham 

tion,  and  find,  perhaps,  that  it  reared  and  trained 
the  people  who  carried  neolithic  arts  into  Europe, 
throughout  the  south  and  west. 

From  abundant  remains  of  the  work  produced 
in  this  prehistoric  Egypt,  its  unnamed  inhabitants 
appear  to  have  built  themselves  houses  of  brick, 
clothed  themselves  in  garments  of  woven  linen, 
served  themselves  with  vessels  of  pottery, 
shaped  exquisitely  without  the  potter's  wheel, 
and  with  vases  of  stone  that  were  cut  to  perfect 
forms,  from  the  hardest  rock,  without  use  of  the 
lathe.  They  worked  as  skillfully,  too,  with 
ivory  and  copper  and  flint,  and  they  practiced  an 
art  of  colored  glazing,  for  which  many  ornamental 
uses  were  found.  Commerce  with  other  Mediter- 
ranean regions  is  believed  to  have  been  active 
already,  since  many  articles  which  seem  to  be 
foreign  in  character  are  found. 

But  those  who  were  the  seed-planters  of  civiliz- 
ation in  Egypt  do  not  seem  to  have  been  suffered 
to  hold  the  land  for  an  uninterrupted  career. 
Other  migrants  came  in,  some  probably  from  the 
east,  and  a  great  mixture  of  races  was  brought 
about,  as  is  proved  by  the  types  of  face 
and  figure  that  appear  in  paintings  on 
vases  and  on  the  walls  of  tombs,  even  before 
the  beginning  of  the  known  historic  period  was 
reached. 

It  is  not  likely  that  modern  prying  into  the 
secrets  of  the  old  dwellers  on  the  Nile  will  ever 
discover  the  precise  time  at  which  they  began  to 
put  words  into  a  written  form;   but  it  is  known 


The  Reading  of  the  Hieroglyphs  57 

now,    very   nearly   with    certainty,    to   antedate 
4700  B.  C. 

Until  the  second  decade  of  our  nineteenth 
Christian  century,  not  a  word  of  the  old  Egyptian 
writing  had  been  read  in  modern  times.  The 
precious  human  history  it  held  had  been  for 
centuries  a  sealed  book.  In  all  its  forms, — in  an 
early  combination  of  picture-writing  with  alpha- 
betical characters,  called  hieroglyphic  by  the 
Greeks,  and  in  later  modifications  called  hieratic 
and  demotic, — the  keys  to  its  decipherment  were 
lost.  But  in  the  year  1799  a  fragment  of  inscrip- 
tion on  stone  was  found  at  Rosetta,  in  the  delta 
of  Egypt,  which  repeated  part  of  a  document  in 
three  texts,  hieroglyphic,  demotic  and  Greek,  the 
latter  translating  the  two  former,  and  thus  fur- 
nishing a  clue  to  their  decipherment  which 
scholars  were  eager  to  seize.  Two  persevering 
students,  Young  and  Champollion,  followed  the 
clue  until,  more  than  twenty  years  later,  the 
mystery  of  the  ancient  Egyptian  language  and 
writing  was  cleared,  and  their  hidden  treasures  of 
history  were  unlocked.    Nevertheless  it  was  long  _   .  , 

■'  °    Decipher- 

before  the  contents  of  that  wonderful  treasury  mem  of 

began  to  be  much  explored.  Until  the  last  half  >syp 
of  the  late  century  was  well  advanced,  the  in- 
scriptions and  other  writings  deciphered  had 
made  no  great  addition  to  the  knowledge  of 
Egypt  gathered  from  Jewish  and  Greek  sources; 
but  they  tested  and  corrected  the  existing  knowl- 
edge, with  important  effects.  Within  our  own 
generation,  the  interest  in  Egyptian  archseology 


38  To  the  Supposed  Age  of  Abraham 

has  grown  rapidly,  the  work  of  exploration  has 
been  extended,  its  methods  reduced  to  system,  its 
results  enriched.  The  undertakings  of  a  few 
recent  years  have  accomplished  discoveries  more 
important  than  all  that  came  from  what  had  been 
done  before. 

Among  the  bits  of  early  Egyptian  story  that 
were  culled  long  ago  from  Greek  writers,  the  most 
important  came  from  a  work  composed  in  the 
third  century  before  Christ  by  an  Egyptian  priest, 
named  Manetho.  The  country  was  then  ruled  by 
Greek  kings  (the  Ptolemies),  and  Manetho  wrote 
in  Greek.  The  three  books  of  Egyptian  history 
which  he  left  are  supposed  to  have  set  forth  very 
fully  the  annals  of  the  country  as  preserved  in 
temple  archives,  with  much  of  priestly  and  popu- 
lar tradition  besides.  Unfortunately,  his  work 
perished,  but  not  until  some  fragments  of  it  had 
been  quoted  in  later  Greek  writings  which  sur- 
vived. Included  in  these  fragments  is  a  list  of  the 
kings  or  pharaohs  who  reigned,  or  were  believed 
to  have  reigned,  in  Egypt,  from  the  founding  of 
Manetho's  tne  pharaonic  monarchy,  dividing  them  into 
list  of  kings  dynasties  or  royal  families,  numbering  thirty-one 
in  all,  down  to  the  conquest  of  Egypt  by  Alex- 
ander the  Great,  and  giving  the  length  of  each 
reign.  Since  the  deciphering  of  the  hieroglyphs, 
other  lists  of  the  same  character  have  been  found, 
agreeing  to  a  great  extent  with  that  of  Manetho, 
and  there  has  been  a  troublesome  question  among 
scholars  as  to  how  much  they  represented  of 
actual   fact.     One  by   one,   as   inscriptions   and 


The  Earliest  Pharoahs  39 

papyrus  manuscripts  were  discovered  and  read, 
the  kings  named  by  Manetho  were  found  speak- 
ing in  them,  or  having  their  works  and  deeds 
declared  by  contemporary  scribes  and  officials, 
until  faith  in  the  substantial  truth  of  the  Mane- 
thonian  record,  back  to  a  certain  point,  had 
grown  to  be  quite  firm.  That  point  appeared  in 
all  the  lists  as  the  beginning  of  a  Fourth  Dynasty, 
which  included  three  pharaohs  who  were  known  pyramid 
as  builders  of  the  great  pyramids  of  Gizeh,  builders 
namely:  Khufu  (called  Cheops  by  the  Greeks), 
Khafra  (or  Chefren),  and  Menkaura,  of  whose 
actuality  there  could  not  be  a  doubt.  But  no 
evidence  whatever  of  three  previous  dynasties, 
reigning  for  some  800  years  before  Khufu,  as 
claimed  in  the  lists,  came  to  light  during  many 
years  of  exploration,  and  the  conclusion  that  they 
were  mythical  had  become  almost  fixed.  The 
Fourth  Dynasty  is  reckoned  to  have  had  its 
beginning  about  4000  years  before  Christ,  and 
that  has  been,  until  lately,  the  remotest  time  to 
which  Egyptian  history,  recorded  on  its  monu- 
ments, could  be  carried  back. 

But  a  great  revelation  occurred  in  1898-9. 
Tombs  opened  at  Abydos  were  found  to  be  those  Tombs  of 
of  kings  of  the  first  pharaonic  dynasty,  founded,  Dynasty, 
according  to  Manetho,  by  Mena,  or  Menes,  at  a 
date  which  recent  computations  carry  back  to 
about  4770  years  before  Christ.  These  tombs 
have  furnished  inscriptions  many  centuries  older 
than  the  oldest  found  before.  More  than  that: 
the   discoveries    at   Abydos    include   tombs   and 


40  To  the  Supposed  Age  of  Abraham 

inscribed  names  of  kings  who  are  thought  to  have 
reigned  (probably  in  lesser  kingdoms)  before 
Mena  had  consolidated  the  pharaonic  monarchy, 
— kings  alluded  to  by  Manetho,  but  not  named 
in  his  list.  Hence  Egyptian  history  appears  now 
to  cover  nearly  7000  years,  with  a  prehistoric 
period  well  lighted  behind  that. 

It  is  conjectured,  for  several  reasons,  that  the 
monarchy  of  the  pharaohs  was  established  by  an 
intruding  people,  who  came  into  the  country  at 
Themon-  some  previous  time  and  gradually  mastered  the 
archyofthe  several  small  kingdoms  or  city-states  into  which 
it  was  then  divided,  until  finally  Mena  made 
himself  lord  of  the  whole.  There  are  differing 
opinions  as  to  whence  these  people  came,  but 
most  writers  on  the  subject  incline  to  seek  their 
origin  somewhere  around  the  southern  extremity 
of  the  Red  Sea,  on  either  the  Asian  or  the  African 
side.  That  they  brought  the  hieroglyphic  system 
of  writing  to  the  Nile,  and  a  culture  more  ad- 
vanced on  the  whole  than  the  prehistoric  Egyp- 
tians had  attained,  and  that  they  dominated  the 
latter  as  a  ruling  "high  caste"  in  subsequent 
history,  are  conclusions  at  which  many  Egyptolo- 
gists have  arrived.  Nevertheless,  the  absence  of 
any  trace,  yet  found  elsewhere,  of  the  peculiar 
art,  the  peculiar  building-ambition,  and  the 
peculiar  religious  ideas  of  the  early  Egyptians, 
leaves  much  room  for  doubting  that  the  civiliza- 
tion which  grew  up  on  the  Nile  received  its  stamp 
of  character  from  any  other  people  or  place.  The 
monarchy  of  the   pharaohs   was   organized    and 


Attainments  of  the  Early  Egyptians  41 

remained  for  ages  in  a  form  which  bore  some 
resemblance  to  the  European  feudal  system  of  a 
later  time.    The  king  was  overlord  of  numerous  Egyptian 

it  •  1  1     j        •    1  1  feudalism 

hereditary  princes,  who  ruled  with  a  large  meas- 
ure of  independence  in  their  several  districts  or 
"nomes." 

Mena,  whose  throne  was  planted  first  at  This 
or  Thinis,  in  Upper  Egypt,  is  said  to  have  founded 
Memphis,  in  Lower  Egypt,  and  made  it  the  Memphis 
capital  of  the  monarchy,  which  it  continued  to  be 
for  centuries,  until  superseded  by  Thebes. 
Between  Mena  and  the  Fourth  Dynasty — the 
dynasty  of  the  great  pyramid  builders — there 
passed  a  period  of  about  800  years,  the  events  of 
which  are  little  known.  It  is  shown  by  its  re- 
mains to  have  been  a  time  of  supreme  develop- 
ment in  some  of  the  finest  qualities  of  the  finer 
arts,  followed  by  a  marked  falling  away  in  work-  Early  art 
manship  and  taste.  But  if  Egyptian  art  lost 
fineness  of  spirit  in  that  period,  it  grew  wonder- 
fully in  bold  strength;  for  then,  as  said  before, 
came  the  beginning  of  the  stupendous  labors  that 
are  represented  by  the  pyramids,  and  by  other 
vast  undertakings  of  temple-building  and  colossal 
sculpture,  which  are  the  marvel  of  the  world. 

From  the  next  dynasty,  the  Fifth,  which  seems 
to  have  been  of  priestly  origin  and  character,  a 
very  different  memorial,  of  higher  interest  and 
distinction  than  all  the  pyramids,  has  been  pre- 
served for  us,  in  a  piece  of  pure  literature  that  is 
older  by  many  centuries  than  any  other  known  to 
exist  in  the  world.     It  is   a   book  of  precepts, 


42 

Precepts  of] 
Ptah-hetep 

Sayce,  e d., 
Records  of 
the  Past, 
New  Series, 
v.  3 


Religious 
ideas 


To  the  Supposed  Age  of  Abraham 

touching  morals  and  manners,  the  manuscript  of 
which  (called  the  "Papyrus  Prisse")  was  found 
at  Thebes  about  fifty  years  ago.  The  author 
describes  himself  as  "the  prefect,  the  feudal  lord, 
Ptah-hotep  (or  Ptah-hetep),  under  the  majesty  of 
the  king  of  the  South  and  the  North,  Assa." 
Assa  was  the  eighth  of  the  nine  kings  of  this  Fifth 
Dynasty,  and  his  reign  is  now  placed  at  not  less 
than  3500  years  before  Christ;  but  there  are  few 
of  the  essential  principles  of  right  and  wrong 
behavior  between  man  and  man  that  were  not 
set  forth  by  this  old  Egyptian  moralist,  who 
wrote  in  that  early  day. 

There  is  much  to  show  that  those  old  Egyptian 
pioneers  of  the  higher  human  training  possessed  a 
capacity  for  exalted  conceptions  of  things,  far 
beyond  the  attainment  of  any  other  people  in 
much  later  times.  Their  religious  ideas  are  a 
strange  mixture  of  what  seems  to  be  puerile 
fetishism  with  a  spirituality  that  is  sublime.  In 
one  view  they  signify  monotheism  and  a  sym- 
bolized worship;  in  another  they  represent  poly- 
theism and  idolatry  of  the  grossest  kind.  The 
gods  worshiped  by  the  pharaonic  Egyptians,  says 
Professor  Sayce,  "were  beneficent  deities,  forms 
of  the  sun-god  from  whom  their  kings  derived 
their  descent.  It  was  a  religion  which  passed 
easily  into  a  sort  of  pantheistic  monotheism  in 
the  more  cultivated  minds,  and  it  was  associated 
with  a  morality  almost  Christian  in  its  character. 
A  belief  in  a  future  world  and  a  resurrection  of 
the  flesh  formed  an  integral  part  of  it;    hence 


Early  Egyptian  Religion  43 

came  the  practice  of  embalming  the  body  that  it 
might  be  preserved  to  the  day  of  resurrection; 
hence,  too,  the  doctrine  of  the  dead  man's  justi- 
fication, not  only  through  his  own  good  works, 
but    through    the    intercession    of    the    sun-god 
Horus  as  well.     .     .     .     Along  with  this  higher 
and  spiritual  religion  went — at  least  in  historical 
times — a  worship  of  sacred  animals.  The  anomaly 
can  be  only  explained  by  that  mixture  of  races 
of  which  archaeology  has  assured  us.    Beast  wor- 
ship must  have  been  the  religion  of  the  prehistoric  s 
inhabitants  of  Egypt.     .     .     .     The  sacred  ani-  Early  Israel 
mals  of  the  older  cult  were  associated  with  the  surround- 
deities  of  the  new-comers;    in  the  eyes  of  the  ™&Natlons> 
upper  classes  they  were  but  symbols;    the  lower 
classes    continued    to    see    in    them    what    their 
fathers  had  seen,  the  gods  themselves." 

The  Sixth  Dynasty  brought  what  Egyptolo- 
gists have  called  the  Old  Empire  to  an  end.  It 
had  a  troubled  close,  and  was  followed  by  some 
six  hundred  years  of  evident  distraction  and 
decline.  The  monuments  left  are  few,  the  records 
scanty,  but  many  marks  of  violence  and  disorder 
are  found.  The  aristocracy  had  grown  in  power, 
at  the  expense  of  the  authority  of  the  kings,  and 
their  feuds  and  rivalries  appear  to  have  been  like  Centuries 
those  of  the  great  English  families  in  the  York 
and  Lancastrian  wars.  Five  dynasties  ran  their 
course  in  this  troubled  time,  and  foreign  intruders 
from  some  quarter  took  part  in  the  strife.  Mem- 
phis ceased  to  be  the  capital,  and  Thebes,  after  a 
time,  came  to  be  the  seat  of  a  prince  who  restored 


44  To  the  Supposed  Age  of  Abraham 

a  strong  government  to  the  long  afflicted  land. 
Order  and    Under    the    Twelfth    Dynasty,    which    rose    at 
restored       Thebes  (about  2778  B.  C,  according  to  Petrie), 
the  ancient  glory  of  Egypt  among  the  nations  was 
renewed.      Enormous    works    of    building    and 
engineering  were  accomplished  once  more.     The 
Petrie  marshy    district    of    Fayum    was    drained,    and 

History  of  storage  of  the  Nile  floods  in  the  part  of  its  great 
iSviii-ix  depression  called  Lake  Moeris  was  regulated  by 
embankments,  canals  and  locks.  This  revival  of 
order  and  energy  in  the  country  endured  for  a 
few  centuries,  and  then,  at  some  uncertain  time 
in  the  midst  of  the  Thirteenth  Dynasty,  civil 
wars  broke  out  afresh,  a  rival  dynasty  tore  part 
of  the  kingdom  from  that  of  Thebes,  and  the 
weakened  nation  was  overwhelmed  by  a  horde  of 
barbarous  invaders  from  the  east.  As  related  by 
Manetho,  in  a  brief  quotation  which  the  Jewish 
historian,  Josephus,  has  preserved  for  us,  "a 
people  of  inglorious  origin  from  the  regions  of  the 
east  suddenly  attacked  the  land,  of  which  they 
took  possession  easily,  without  a  struggle.  They 
Sw  the  overthrew  those  who  ruled  in  it,  burnt  down  the 
Hyksos.^  cities  and  laid  waste  the  sanctuaries  of  the  gods. 
They  ill-treated  all  the  inhabitants,  for  they  put 
some  to  the  sword,  and  carried  others  into  cap- 
tivity with  their  wives  and  children.  Then  they 
made  one  of  themselves  king."  Manetho  add? 
that  these  people  bore  the  name  of  Hyksos,  mean- 
ing "shepherd  kings,"  and  that  in  his  time  they 
were  supposed  to  have  been  Arabs.  Modern 
scholars   in  general   agree  with   the  opinion  of 


Petrie,  ch.x 


Intrusion  of  the  Shepherd  Kings  45 

Manetho,  that  the  Hyksos  conquerors  of  ancient 
Egypt  were  probably  from  Arabia,  for  the  most 
part,  and  that  they  were  Semites,  without  doubt. 
They  dominated  Egypt  for  several  centuries,  and 
there  is  evidence  that  they  became  Egyptianized 
in  manners,  customs,  language,  and  general 
culture,  but  not  in  religion,  for  they  held  to  the 
worship  of  the  Semitic  Bel  or  Baal,  in  one  of  his 
many  forms.  It  was  that  religious  difference 
which  brought  about  their  expulsion  at  last. 

It  seems  to  be  almost  a  matter  of  certainty  that 
the  relations  with  Egypt  into  which  the  Children 
of  Israel  were  brought  came  about  while  the 
Hyksos  were  ruling  the  land.  At  some  early  part 
of  that  period,  the  visit  of  Abraham  is  supposed 
to  have  been  made,  and  the  story  of  Joseph's 
career  in  Egypt  can  only  be  connected  with  the  Abraham 
reign  of  one  of  the  later  Hyksos  kings.  We  are 
thus  at  a  point  at  which  the  thread  of  history 
from  the  Nile  becomes  twisted  into  another  from 
the  Euphrates,  and  we  may  properly  drop  this 
for  a  time  to  trace  that. 

Babylonia 

The  old  civilization  which  ran  its  long  course  in 
the  valley  of  the  Euphrates  suffered  there  a 
deeper  burial  than  happened  to  the  early  civiliza- 
tion of  the  Nile.  The  latter  left  half  of  its  sepul- 
chres and  monuments  above  ground,  for  a  sign 
and  a  promise  to  the  explorer,  and  challenged  the 
reading  of  its  records  by  graving  them  mostly  on 
the  open  faces  of  great  rocks.    The  former  sank 


46 


Clay 
buildi 
and  books 


lings 


Buried 
libraries 


To  the  Supposed  Age  of  Abraham 

from  sight  into  deep  graves,  under  shapeless 
heaps  of  earth,  which  hinted  nothing  of  the 
secrets  they  held.  To  the  ancients  of  the  Baby- 
lonian river,  Nature  had  given  clay  instead  of 
stone  for  their  most  enduring  uses.  Their 
temples,  their  palaces,  and  all  their  greater  struc- 
tures, were  of  brick,  either  sun-dried  or  baked; 
and  so,  likewise,  were  their  documents  and  their 
books.  They  devised  an  alphabet  of  strange 
characters,  formed  of  wedge-shaped  lines,  easily 
marked  by  a  simple  instrument  on  soft  clay,  and 
their  writing  in  those  cuneiform  characters  was 
done  almost  wholly  on  clay  tablets  and  cylinders, 
which  became  well-nigh  imperishable  when 
baked.  Time  dissolved  the  foundations  and  the 
walls  of  their  vast  earthen  edifices  into  formless 
mounds,  and  countless  stores  of  those  precious 
plates  of  baked  clay,  which  held  literature  and 
history  in  their  keeping,  were  engulfed  and  hidden 
in  the  sunken  mass.  No  suspicion  of  their  exist- 
ence was  wakened  until  near  the  beginning  of  the 
nineteenth  century,  and  nothing  was  read  from 
them  until  that  century  was  half  spent. 

In  this  case,  the  mystery  of  language  and 
writing  was  harder  to  master  than  that  of  the 
Egyptian  hieroglyphs,  since  no  Greek  translation 
gave  a  clue.  The  clue,  indeed,  was  found  in 
certain  inscriptions  which  repeated,  like  the 
Rosetta  stone,  the  same  text  in  three  languages, 
but  those  languages  were  all  equally  unknown. 


These 


trilingual 


inscriptions,    moreover,    were 


found  far  away  from  the  Euphrates,  at  Persepolis 


In  the  Valley  of  the  Euphrates  47 

and  Behistun,  in  Persia,  and  they  were  studied 
long  before  any  thought  of  connecting  them  with 
the  speech  of  the  Babylonian  peoples  occurred. 
The  three  languages  contained  were  all  inscribed 
in  cuneiform  characters,  and  proved  in  the  end  to 
be   the   language   of   the   ancient   Persians    (the  Dec'Pher- 

00  v  ment  of  the 

Zend),  the  language  of  Elam  (called  the  Susian),  cuneiform 
and  the  language  of  Babylonia  and  Assyria,  now 
generally  called  Assyrian,  though  it  came  from 
the  older  people  of  the  valley.  The  common 
alphabet  of  the  three  languages  was  mastered  and 
the  Persian  text  fully  translated,  in  1846,  by  Sir 
Henry  Rawlinson,  after  long  labor,  greatly 
helped  by  the  studies  of  other  scholars,  especially 
of  Grotefend,  Lassen,  and  Burnouf.  Another 
quarter  century  or  more  was  spent  upon  the 
Susian  and  Assyrian  tongues,  before  their  gram- 
mar and  vocabulary  could  be  said  to  be  fairly 
understood. 

Meantime,  the  work  of  excavation  in  the  great 
ruin-heaps  of  the  Mesopotamian  valley,  first 
begun  effectively  by  Botta  and  Layard,  in  1842  Work  of 

do     _  i  r    excavation 

1845,  was  harvesting  an  enormous  store  or 

inscriptions  which  waited  to  be  read;  and  every 
new  reading  gave  fresh  excitement  and  stimula- 
tion to  the  search.  Here,  it  was  found,  were 
amazing  explanations,  confirmations,  or  correc- 
tions of  Bible  history,  from  older  sources,  which 
touched  the  very  springs  of  Hebrew  tradition  and 
reported  from  the  very  theaters  of  event.  After 
Layard,  the  exploring  spade  was  taken  up  by 
Rassam  and  by  George  Smith,  with  English  sup- 


48  To  the  Supposed  Age  of  Abraham 

port,  by  De  Sarzec,  as  a  consul  of  France,  by 
German  archaeologists,  and  finally,  with  greater 
system  and  thoroughness,  by  the  expeditions  of 
the  University  of  Pennsylvania,  under  Dr. 
Peters,  Professor  Hilprecht  and  Mr.  Hayne.  The 
resulting  gains  to  historical  knowledge  are  almost 
beyond  belief. 

No  longer  ago  than  1870,  in  the  second  edition 
of  his  Five  Great  Monarchies  of  the  Ancient  World, 
— which  was  then  the  accepted  summary  of 
oriental  learning  in  that  field, — Professor  George 
Rawlinson,  writing  of  Babylonian  history  under 
what  is  now  known  to  be  the  erroneous  name  of 
"Chaldaean,"  said:  "Chaldaean  history  may  be 
regarded  as  opening  upon  us  at  a  time  anterior, 
at  any  rate  by  a  century  or  two,  to  B.  C.  2286. 
It  was  then  that  Nimrod,  the  son  or  descendant  of 
Cush,  set  up  a  kingdom  in  Lower  Mesopotamia 
which  attracted  the  attention  of  the  surrounding 
nations.  The  people  whom  he  led  came  probably 
by  sea;  at  any  rate  their  earliest  settlement  was 
on  the  coast."  Thirty-one  years  later  (1901)  a 
learned  historian  of  Babylonia,  Professor  Rogers, 
found  no  reason  for  any  mention  of  Nimrod  as  an 
historical  character,  but  traced  a  recorded  his- 
b.  c.  4500  tory,  on  the  authority  of  Professor  Hilprecht,  to 
a  point  of  time  "before  4500  B.  C." 

Forty  years  ago,  Professor  Rawlinson,  writing 
of  Babylon  in  Smith's  Dictionary  of  the  Bible, 
could  barely  name,  as  a  shadowy  first  figure  in  its 
story,  the  "Amraphel,  king  of  Shinar,"  contem- 
porary of  Abraham,  who  is  mentioned  in  the  14th 


Israel, 
p.  xii 


Late  Discoveries  49 

chapter  of  Genesis,  and  add  that  "from  this  point 
the  history  of  Babylon  is  almost  a  blank  for 
above  twelve  centuries."  In  1899,  Professor 
Sayce  could  write:  "The  Babylonia  of  the  age  of 
Amraphel,  the  contemporary  of  Abraham,  has, 
thanks  to  the  recent  finds,  become  as  well  known 
to  us  as  the  Athens  of  Perikles;  the  daily  life  of 
the  people  can  be  traced  in  all  its  outlines,  and  we 
even  possess  autograph  letters  written  by  Am-  ga 
raphel  himself.  The  culture  of  Babylonia  was  Eariy_ 
already  immensely  old.  .  .  .  The  age  of 
Amraphel,  indeed,  is  in  certain  respects  an  age 
of  decline.  The  heyday  of  Babylonian  art  lay 
nearly  two  thousand  years  before  it."  Thus 
marvelously  has  the  horizon  of  history  been 
widened  eastward,  and  its  dark  distances  search- 
lighted,  within  our  own  generation, — mostly 
within  the  last  twenty  years. 

The  undefined  lower  part  of  the  valley  of  the 
Euphrates  and  the  Tigris,  which  has  come  to  be 
called  Babylonia,  appears  to  have  borne,  at  a 
very  early  time,  in  some  portion  at  least,  the 
name  of  Kengi,  signifying  the  "land  of  canals  and 
reeds,"  and  inscriptions  lately  found  name  one  Rogers> 
En-shag-kush-ana  as  "lord  of  Kengi,"  at  a  period  By*"?  °? 

0  1  Babylonia 

which  is  believed  to  be  more  than  4500  years  and 
before  Christ.  This  lord  of  Kengi  was  likewise  ^Sch.i 
patesi,  or  chief  priest,  of  the  god  En-lil,  whose 
temple  was  at  Nippur,  where  the  explorations  of 
the  University  of  Pennsylvania  are  carried  on. 
His  inscriptions  prove  that  the  cuneiform  system 
of  writing  was  already  in  use;  the  name  given  to 


50  To  the  Supposed  Age  of  Abraham 

the  country  shows  that  its  low  flats  and  marshes 
had  already  been  drained  by  canals;  and  by 
many  tokens  it  appears  that  the  people  of  Kengi 
had  reached  a  stage  of  civilization  which  needs 
millenniums  of  advancing  ancestral  culture  be- 
hind to  explain  it.  But  nothing  to  mark  or  hint 
of  the  preceding  stages  of  that  advance  has  yet 
come  to  light.  There  is  no  present  glimpse  of  a 
prehistoric  period  of  life  in  the  land;  no  relics,  as 
No  in  Egypt,  of  a  mute  culture,  which  could  report 

prehistoric  itself  to  future  times  by  works  of  art,  but  not  by 
found"55  written  speech.  It  would  seem,  therefore,  that 
the  first  inhabitants  must  have  come  from  some 
other  land,  already  equipped  with  their  alphabet; 
but  where  is  the  country  in  which  marks  of  the 
birth  of  a  culture  like  that  of  these  old  Babyloni- 
ans is  likely  to  be  found? 

In  the  opinion  of  a  majority  of  the  scholars 
who  have  studied  the  subject,  the  early  inhabit- 
ants who  endowed  Babylonia  with  its  system  of 
writing,  with  much  of  its  religion,  much  of  its 
legends  and  literature,  and  much  in  fact  of  all 
that  is  most  characteristic  of  its  civilization,  were 
The  early  not  the  people  who  dominated  the  country  during 
later  the  greater  part  of  its  historical  life.    A  difference 

peop  es  0£  iangUage  [s  found,  which  is  thought  to  indicate 
a  difference  of  race.  But  this  conclusion  is  dis- 
puted by  some,  who  hold  that  the  supposed  older 
language  is  only  a  mystifying  system  of  writing, 
invented  by  the  priests.  The  language  in  ques- 
tion appears  to  belong  to  what  is  known  as  the 
agglutinative   class,   the   elements   of  its   words 


The  Sumerian  Civilization  51 

being  loosely  glued  together,  instead  of  being 
fused,  as  words  in  the  inflectional  languages  are; 
and  this  leads  to  the  conjecture  that  it  was  the 
language  of  a  people  who  came  from  the  Mongo- 
lian stock;  whereas  the  later  Babylonians  belong 
with  certainty  to  the  Semitic  group  of  the  white- 
skinned  race. 

According  to  the  theory  which  now  prevails, 
the  Semites  were  later  comers  in  the  country,  who  Sumerian  _ 

..  .,  ..  1  ....j  .         and  Semitic 

subjugated  an  earlier  and  more  civilized  people,  Babylonia 
appropriated  their  culture,  and  preserved  a 
knowledge  of  their  language  for  the  sake  of  the 
literature  it  contained.  This  language  is  some- 
times referred  to  in  the  old  inscriptions  as  the 
language  of  Accad  (a  name  derived  from  the  city 
of  Agade)  and  sometimes  as  the  language  of 
Sumer  (the  land  of  Shinar  mentioned  in  Genesis 
x,  10);  the  distinction  of  name  representing  a 
difference  of  dialect.  As  the  dialect  of  Sumer  is 
decided  to  be  the  older  form,  both  language  and 
people  are  now  called  Sumerian. 

Between  that  most  ancient  Sumerian  civiliza- 
tion  of   Babylonia    and    the    oldest    remains    of 
primitive  culture  in  China,  many  striking  analo-  Sumerian 
gies    have    been    found,    in    names,    in    arts,    in  *n<! 
astronomical  and  astrological  ideas,  in  chrono-  analogies 
logical  systems,  and  the  like.    These  are  marked 
enough  to  furnish  quite  substantial  ground  for 
conjecturing  that  the  founders  of  the   Chinese 
nation  were  an  offshoot  of  the  people  who  origin- 
ated the  Babylonian  civilization,  driven  out,  per- 
haps, by  the  Semitic  invaders,  or  otherwise  set  in 


52 


To  the  Supposed  Age  of  Abraham 


Sumerian 

political 

system 


Sargon, 
B.  C.  3800 

Rogers, 

Babylonia 
and  Assyria 
1:361-5 


motion  toward  the  east.  It  is  difficult,  but  it  is 
not  impossible,  to  believe  in  the  occurrence  of  so 
distant  a  migration  as  that  from  the  Euphrates  to 
the  Hoang-Ho;  for  much  wide  wandering  went 
on  in  the  early  world. 

In  the  political  state  of  the  Sumerian  people, 
government  seems  to  have  taken  form  in  cities  at 
first,  as  a  growth  of  authority  in  the  hands  of  the 
chief  priests.  Each  city  worshiped  its  own  god, 
for  whom  it  claimed  supremacy  over  the  gods  of 
its  neighbors,  and  this  religious  rivalry  was  a 
cause  of  perpetual  strife.  Some  cities  were  able 
to  subjugate  their  neighbors  and  became  the  seats 
of  small  dominions,  between  which  the  same 
struggle  for  supremacy  went  on.  En-shag-kush- 
ana,  who  called  himself  "lord  of  Kengi,"  appears 
to  have  united  a  considerable  part  of  the  southern 
region  in  a  single  kingdom  under  his  rule.  For 
several  succeeding  centuries  there  are  notices  of 
war,  recurring  again  and  again,  with  varying 
fortunes,  between  communities  at  the  south  and 
at  the  north  of  the  lower  valley,  and  this  is  held 
to  have  been  part  of  the  long  strife  of  the  Sumeri- 
ans  with  the  invading  Semites,  who  made  their 
encroachments  from  the  northwest.  At  length, 
about  3800  B.  C,  a  Semitic  king  of  Agade,  named 
Shargina,  or  Sargon,  mastered  the  whole  of  Baby- 
lonia, overcame  the  Elamites,  in  the  mountain 
country  which  borders  it  on  the  southeast,  carried 
his  arms  even  to  Syria  and  Canaan,  and  estab- 
lished for  a  time  the  first  considerable  empire  that 
rose  in  that  region  of  the  world.    Numerous  in- 


The  Elamite  Conquest  53 

scriptions  relating  to  this  early  Sargon  have  been 
found  at  Nippur,  and  he  is  the  first  striking  figure 
in  the  annals  of  the  Asiatic  east. 

During  about  fifteen  centuries  after  Sargon  and 
his  son,  who  maintained  his  father's  empire,  the 
scanty  records  afford  only  faint  and  confused 
glimpses  of  rising  and  falling  monarchies,  seated 
in  different  cities, — at  Shirpurla,  at  Ur,  at  Isin,  at 
Larsa,  and  probably  at  other  capitals  yet  to  be 
named, — each  claiming  sovereignty  of  the  "king- 
dom of  Sumer  and  Accad,"  as  the  realm  was 
called,  by  whomsoever  held,  and  sometimes  indi- 
cating a  sovereignty  that  reached  again,  like  that 
of  Sargon,  to  the  Mediterranean  Sea.  What  les- 
ser states  existed  in  more  or  less  independence  is 
little  known. 

About  2200  or  2300  B.  C,  the  country,  in  its 
southern  part  at  least,  was  assailed  overwhelm- 
ingly by  its  more  barbarous  neighbors,  the 
Elamites,  who  evidently  struck  at  the  venerable 
Sumerian  civilization  with  an  unsparing  hand. 
The  American  explorers  at  Nippur  have  found  Elamite 

r  rr  conquest, 

grievous  marks  of  the  destruction  wrought  then  B-  c-  23oo 
on  the  older  works  of  art.    There  are  reasons  for 
conjecturing  that  the  Chedorlaomer  (or  Kudur 
Laghghamer),  king  of  Elam,  who  is  mentioned  in 
Genesis,  was  the  leader  in  this  attack,  or  that  he  Genesis  £r 
reigned  in  Elam  shortly  after  it  occurred. 

For  some  years  Sumer  and  Accad  were  subject 
to  Elam;  and  then  their  deliverance  came  from 
the  city  of  Babylon, — the  city  whose  name  is  now 
given  to  the  whole  region  and  people,  because  it 


54  To  the  Supposed  Age  of  Abraham 

centered  all  their  subsequent  history  in  itself,  and 
became  the  most  renowned  of  the  capitals  of  the 
ancient  eastern  world.  Until  the  day  when  it  led 
revolt  against  Elam  it  must  have  been  unimport- 
Riseof  ant  and  obscure,  since  hardly  any  previous  men- 
Babylon       t'on  Q£  jts  name  has  been  found.    Hammurabi,  or 

Ammu-rabi,  or  Khammurabi,  who  leaps  then, 
iiavnmu-  suddenly,  to  the  front  of  affairs  in  the  valley,  is 
(Amraphei)    said  to  have  been  the  sixth  of  its  city  kings.  With 

E.C.2200C?)  1J1.1  „.!_      «i  ■  r   c-l-  ?> 

not  much  doubt,  he  was  the      king  of  bhinar 
called  Amraphei  in  the  chapter  of  Genesis  men- 
tioned above.    It  is  certain  that  he  was  one  of  the 
epoch-making  men  of  history. 

Hammurabi  drove  the  Elamites  back  to  their 
mountains  and  united  the  whole  land  of  Sumer 
and  Accad  under  a  firmer  and  more  settled  gov- 
ernment than  it  had  known  before.  He  not  only 
restored  peace  and  prosperity  to  the  country, 
gave  it  a  written  code  of  laws,  extended  its  limits, 
improved  its  canals,  established  a  storage  of  grain 
for  years  of  scant  harvest,  carried  on  great  works 
of  temple-building,  and  began  to  impart  to  Baby- 
lon the  splendor  which  afterwards  outshone  that 
of  all  other  capitals,  but  he  made  his  city,  from 
that  time  onward,  the  seat  of  learning,  the  center 
of  culture,  the  school  of  civilization,  for  surround- 
ing peoples.  Astronomy,  long  studied  on  the 
wide  plains  of  Shinar,  and  literature,  long  culti- 
Goodspeed,  vated,  received  new  encouragement  at  his  hands. 
theBclyion-  The  volume  of  literature,  religious  for  the  most 
ians  and       part,  is  found  to  have  become  large,  already,  and 

Assyrians,       .  , .  -i-n/i-ir  "  •  ' 

107-117        its  quality  rich.     Much  from  it  was  passing  into 


Hammurabi 

From  Memoire  de  la  Delegation  en  Perse,  Plate  IV 


Hammurabi  of  Babylon  55 

the  legends  and  sacred  literature  of  other  peoples, 
especially  those  of  Semitic  speech.  The  oldest  of 
known  epics,  the  hero-story  of  Izdubar  or  Gil- 
garnish,  which  contains,  among  its  episodes,  the  The  legend 
legend  of  the  deluge  in  a  more  archaic  form  than  deluge 
that  of  Genesis,  was  composed  at  this  or  an  earlier 
time.  Of  its  twelve  tablets,  containing  some 
three  thousand  lines,  about  half  have  been  re- 
covered and  read. 

Hammurabi's  code  of  laws,  formulated  from 
past  decisions  of  courts  and  from  accepted  notions 
of  right,  was  inscribed  by  his  command  on  slabs 
of  stone  (stelae)  and  set  up  in  the  principal  cities; 
with  a  statement  that  this  was  done  to  enable 
every  man  to  learn  his  rights.  One  copy  of  the 
code,  thus  graven  on  stone,  has  been  found  in  Hammu- 
recent  years,  not  in  Babylonia,  but  in  the  ruins  of  ra  1S  °  e 
Susa,  the  old  capital  of  Elam,  to  which  it  had 
been  carried,  among  the  spoils  of  a  new  Elamite 
conquest  of  Babylonia,  some  three  hundred  years 
after  Hammurabi  passed  away.  As  evidence  of 
the  well-ordered  ideas  and  institutions  of  justice 
that  prevailed  in  that  corner  of  the  world  more 
than  four  thousand  years  ago,  this  is  one  of  the 
most  important  monuments  of  antiquity  that  has 
ever  come  to  light. 

Until  Hammurabi  gave  supremacy  to  Babylon, 
the  god  En-lil,  whose  chief  temple  was  at  Nippur, 
had  been  ranked  first  among  the  deities,  the  Bel,  J^T" 
or  Lord,  of  all.  But  the  lordship  of  Babylon  car- 
ried with  it  the  lordship  of  its  patron  deity, 
Marduk,  who  now  became  the  recognized  Bel. 


.,       >»iiu      """       .-/v^"*"^      y.*i~      *v,v,w0. 


56 


To  the  Supposed  Age  of  Abraham 


Excepting  in  such  concessions  of  supremacy  to 
one  god  among  many,  there  seems  to  be  no  trace 
of  a  monotheistic  idea  in  the  Babylonian  religion, 
and  its  conceptions  are  distinctly  lower  than  those 
which  the  Egyptians  attained. 

Either  during  the  reign  of  Hammurabi,  or 
Abraham's  shortly  before  he  established  his  rule,  the  migra- 
toCftnwn  tion  of  Abram  or  Abraham,  from  the  Babylonian 
city  called  "Ur  of  the  Chaldees"  in  the  Biblical 
narrative,  into  the  land  of  Canaan,  is  supposed  to 
have  occurred.  Some  have  conjectured  that  the 
name  of  Abraham,  in  the  Bible  story,  as  narrated 
from  tradition,  is  a  name  around  which  vague 
memories  of  a  Semitic  migration,  or  a  series  of 
migrations,  from  Babylonia  into  Canaan,  had 
gathered  various  legends,  and  that  it  represents, 
not  the  actual  progenitor,  but  some  famous  leader 
in  the  movements  of  the  race.  But  the  story  as  it 
stands  is  not  incredible,  and  there  is  no  sufficient 
reason  for  doubting  that  Abraham  is  an  historical 
character  and  the  ancestor  of  the  Children  of 
Israel. 

Though  he  and  his  descendants,  for  a  long 
period,  were  dwellers  in  tents,  living  a  nomadic 
tribal  life,  like  that  of  their  near  relatives,  the 
nomadic  Arabs,  he  had  come  from  a  country  of 
considerable  civilization,  where  writing  and  the 
Babylonian  keeping  of  records  were  common,  and  he  had  not 
civilization    jeft  t^t  state  of  civilization  behind  him.    In  the 

in  Canaan 

opinion  of  Professor  Sayce,  "Abraham  took  with 
him  to  the  west  the  traditions  and  philosophy  of 
Babylonia,  and  found  there  a  people  already  well 


Canaan  in  the  Time  of  Abraham         57 

acquainted  with  the  literature,  the  law  and  the 

religion  of  his  fatherland;"    for  "the  power  and 

influence  of  Babylonia  had  been  firmly  established 

for  centuries  throughout  the  length  and  breadth 

of  western  Asia."    It  is  not  necessary,  therefore, 

to  assume  that  the  early  annals  of  Israel  were  ^,ay^e' 

wholly  traditional,  since  more  or  less  of  record  /.f/w/,39-37 

may   easily    have    been    preserved.      Abraham's 

visit  to  Egypt,  because  of  famine  in  Canaan,  was 

an  incident  natural  to  the  state  of  things  in  that 

country  under  the  Hyksos  pharaohs,  if  they  were 

Semites,  from  either  Arabia  or  Mesopotamia,  as 

supposed. 


Early  Arabia 

If  the  "Shepherd  Kings"  and  their  followers  in 
Egypt  came  out  of  Arabia,  it  must  have  been 
from  those  northern  parts  of  the  peninsula  which 
have  been  almost  changeless  in  their  nomadic, 
semi-barbarous  state  of  life  through  all  historic 
time.  Southwestern  Arabia  was  the  seat  of  an 
early  civilization  that  rose  to  a  high  mark,  but  its 
real  antiquity  and  all  that  concerns  its  beginnings 
and  its  development  are  unknown.  Many  things 
have  suggested  a  close  connection  of  southern 
Arabia  and  the  opposite  African  coasts,  in  some 
way,  with  the  early  culture  of  both  Egypt  and 
Babylonia;  but  whether  as  giving  or  receiving  is 
doubtful,  and  the  whole  subject  waits  for  such 
light  as  future  exploration  may  yield. 


58  To  the  Supposed  Age  of  Abraham 

Early  Canaan  and  the  Canaanites 

Canaan,  when  Abraham  came  to  it,  may  not 
have  been  known  by  that  name,  and  the  Canaan- 
ites with  whom  his  descendants  fought  for  it  may 
not  have  arrived  in  the  land.  Those  called 
Canaanites  in  Bible  history  were  Semites,  related 
McCurdy,  closely  to  Abraham  and  his  seed,  and,  according 
Prophecy,  to  their  own  traditions,  supported  by  other  evi- 
aMonuments  dence,  they  were  migrants  from  the  same  region 
bk. i.ch.Hi,  on  the  Persian  Gulf,  probably  near  to  Babylonia; 
ch.  i  ' 3'  but  the  time  of  their  migration  is  uncertain.  One 
part  of  these  people  took  possession  of  the  valleys 
and  plains;  another  part  settled  on  the  seacoast 
and  became  a  nation  of  sailors  and  traders, — the 
Sidonians  of  the  Bible, — the  Phoenicians  of  a 
later  age.  The  Canaanites  of  the  Bible  included 
both.  Another  people  who  were  probably  in 
Canaan  before  Abraham's  day  were  the  Amorites, 
who  held  the  mountains  of  that  country  and  of 
Syria,  and  who  do  not  seem  to  have  come  from 
the  Semitic  stock,  but  from  that  of  the  Libyans, 
in  northern  Africa;  this,  however,  is  a  point  in 
some  dispute.  Throughout  all  Syria  and  Canaan 
the  influence  of  Babylonia,  and  sometimes  its 
sovereignty,  seems  then  and  long  after  to  have 
been  supreme.  That  of  Egypt,  their  nearer 
neighbor,  was  little  shown. 

Mesopotamia  and  Syria 

The    civilizing    influence    of    Babylonia    was 
potent  far  northward  and  westward,  in  the  Meso- 


In  the  Lands  of  the  Greeks  59 

potamian  valley  and  on  its  borders,  especially 
among  the  Semitic  peoples,  who  seem  to  have 
been  in  possession  of  most  of  the  region  which  the 
two  rivers  drained.  The  powerful  nation  of  the 
Assyrians,  who  came  into  history  at  a  later  day, 
were  probably  settling  themselves,  by  this  time, 
on  the  eastern  bank  of  the  Tigris,  and  becoming  Beginnings 
trained  in  local  warfare  for  their  future  career.  °fAssyna 
They  looked  to  Babylon  for  all  teaching  except  in 
commerce  and  war,  for  which  pursuits  they  were 
better  endowed  than  their  kinsmen  of  the  south. 
The  country  above  Babylonia,  between  the 
Tigris  and  Euphrates  (which  was  the  true  Meso- 
potamia of  the  ancients),  and  much  of  the  Syrian 
country  west  of  that,  was  occupied  by  Semites  of  Aramseans 
the  branch  called  Aramaean,  who  bore  in  history 
very  little  of  an  independent  part.  They  were 
overpowered,  repeatedly,  by  non-Semitic  invad- 
ers from  the  highlands  of  Armenia  and  eastern 
Asia  Minor,  at  first,  and  then  by  the  masterful 
Assyrians,  who  bent  conquerors  and  conquered 
under  one  common  yoke.  Nothing  is  known  of  H;ttites 
the  home  or  the  state,  at  this  period,  of  certain 
non-Semitic  peoples,  Hittites  and  Mitannians,  Mitanmans 
who  appeared  in  the  great  valley  a  few  centuries 
later,  possibly  coming  from  beyond  the  mountains 
of  the  north  and  northwest,  with  a  quite  advanced 
culture  of  their  own. 

In  and  on  the  ^gean 

Some  glimpses  have  been  obtained  Lately  of  an 
early  civilization  which  must,  within  this  period 


60  To  the  Supposed  Age  of  Abraham 

(that  is,  we  will  say,  prior  to  the  ending  of  the 
third  millennium  before  Christ),  have  been  rising 
in  and  around  the  iEgean  Sea.  The  people  of  that 
region,  in  the  islands,  as  well  as  on  the  borders  of 
Asia  Minor  and  on  the  mainland  of  Greece, 
appear  to  have  made  remarkable  progress  in 
artistic  development,  before  signs  of  any  approach 
to  the  literate  stage  of  culture  are  found.  Their 
handiwork,  especially  in  pottery,  shows  the 
germinating,  even  then,  of  that  fineness  of  taste 
which  gave  distinction  to  the  Greek  art  of  later 
times.  Proof  almost  to  certainty  of  a  consider- 
able exchange  of  such  products  with  Egypt,  even 
at  a  date  earlier  than  that  suggested  above,  has 
been  found  of  late,  both  in  Egypt  and  Crete.  On 
other  parts,  too,  of  the  northern  coast  of  the 
Mediterranean  there  are  relics  of  an  earlier  cul- 
ture and  an  earlier  activity  of  trade  than  had 
been  supposed. 

The  Table-land  of  Iran 

Eastward  and  southeastward  from  the  valley 
of  the  Tigris  and  Euphrates  lies  the  high  moun- 
tain-bounded region  that  is  often  described  as  the 
"table  land  of  Iran,"  represented  in  modern 
geography  by  Persia,  Afghanistan,  Baluchistan, 
and  part  of  Turkish  Kurdistan.  At  some  very 
early  time,  as  we  have  noted  already,  this  region, 
and  the  valley  of  the  Indus  that  lies  beyond  it, 
came  into  the  possession  of  peoples  whose  lan- 
guages belonged  to  the  Aryan  group.     Whence 


In  Iran  and  China  6i 

and  when  they  came  to  it,  if  not  aboriginal  in  it, 
and  how  they  became  separated  so  widely  from 
the  groups  whose  history  is  the  history  of  Europe, 
are  among  the  questions  that  ethnologists  hold  in 
debate.  Possibly  those  ancestors  of  the  Persian 
and  the  Hindu,  whose  speech  had  an  origin  akin 
to  our  own,  were  dwelling  in  Iran  and  on  the 
Indus  (which  gave  its  name  to  India)  before 
Hammurabi  raised  Babylon  to  greatness,  and 
before  Abraham  went  into  Canaan;  but  nothing 
yet  discovered  offers  ground  for  any  reckoning  of 
dates  in  their  prehistoric  life,  until  a  far  later  time. 

China 

On  the  remoter  plains  and  valleys  of  China,  if 
we  trust  the  annals  recorded  in  that  country  at  a 
later  day,  the  national  history  had  its  opening  at 
about  the  Abrahamic  age.  A  Book  of  History 
credited  to  Confucius  starts  from  the  reign  of  a 
king  or  emperor  Yao,  who  is  dated  by  some  cal- 
culations as  early  as  2357  B.  C,  and  by  others  as 
late  as  2085.  Other  Chinese  writings  name 
sovereigns  before  Yao,  but  the  marks  of  myth 
seem  plain  on  what  is  told  of  them;  and  recent 
European  scholars  have  found  some  added  rea- 
sons in  those  myths  for  conjecturing  that  the 
Chinese  nation  sprang  from  an  emigrating  body 
of  the  people  who  planted  the  civilization  called 
Sumerian  in  the  lower  valley  of  the  Euphrates. 
If  that  conjecture  is  correct,  the  emigration  had 
occurred,  without  doubt,  at  a  time  within  the 
period  of  our  present  survey. 


CHAPTER  II 

FROM  THE    SUPPOSED   AGE  OF  ABRA- 
HAM TO  THE  DEATH  OF  DAVID 

(Approximately,  B.  C.  2200  to  960) 

Egypt:  The  rule  of  the  Hyksos. — Their  expulsion. — Probability  of  the  story 
of  Joseph. — Amenhotep,  the  sun-worshiper. — Discovery  of  his  foreign  cor- 
respondence at  Tel-el-Amarna. — Ramses  II.,  the  pharaoh  who  oppressed  the 
Israelites.  Babylonia:  Development  of  schools,  libraries,  arts,  literature, 
trade. — Rule  of  the  Kassites. — The  rise  of  Assyria. — Canaan  and  Aramea: 
The  exodus  of  Israel  from  Egypt. — Babylonian  influence  in  Mosaic  institu- 
tions.— The  Israelite  conquest  of  Canaan. — The  period  of  the  Judges. — 
Wars  with  the  Philistines. — The  founding  of  the  Hebrew  monarchy. — Saul. 
— David. — David's  conquests. — His  decline  in  character. — Strife  for  the  suc- 
cession to  David's  crown. — Triumph  of  Solomon.  The  Phoenicians:  Former 
overestimate  of  the  civilizing  influence  of  the  Phoenicians.; — They  were  not 
the  inventors  of  the  alphabet.  Cheek  Regions:  Early  civilization  in  and  on 
the  ^Egean. — Knowledge  from  the  work  of  excavation. — Light  on  the 
Homeric  poems. — Tyrians  and  Mycense. — Astonishing  discoveries  in  Crete. — 
The  labyrinth  of  King  Minos. — Cretan  writing. — Apparent  origin  of  the 
Phoenician  alphabet. — The  Cretan  age. — The  Mycenaean  age. — Divisions  of 
the  Hellenic  peoples. — Movement  of  the  Dorians. — Ionian  preservation  of 
the  early  culture.  Elsewhere:  Probable  state  of  other  parts  of  Europe. — 
The  lake-dwellers. — Stonehenge. — Lydia. — Phrygia. — The  Trojans. — The 
Aryas. — The  Vedic  hymns. — The  Avesta. 

Egypt 

Nothing  yet  found  on  the  monuments  or  in  the 
tombs  and  ruins  of  Egypt  throws  much  light  on 
the  period  during  which  the  country  was  subject 
to  the  Hyksos.  It  was  a  long  period,  in  which 
three  successive  conditions  prevailed,  each  for  a 
long  time.  First,  for  what  seems  to  have  been 
several  generations,  the  country  was  harassed  and 
ravaged  by  the  invaders,  whose  domination  it 
strove  to  resist.  Then,  for  two  or  three  centuries, 
Under  the  it  was  submissive  to  Hyksos  kings,  under  whom 
some  shadowy  show  of  vice-royalty  was  kept  up 
by  princes  of  the  old  dynastic  lines.  In  this  time 
the  civilization  of  the  conquered  overcame  the 

62 


Hyksos 


Egypt  Freed  From  the  Hyksos  63 

semi-barbarism  of  the  conquerors,  to  so  great  an 
extent  that  the  relics  of  the  age  show  no  striking 
marks  of  change.     But  the  Hyksos  pharaohs  re- 
mained faithful  to  their  own  gods,  of  whom  they 
held  one  Sutekh  to  be  the  chief,  and  this  religious 
difference,   no  doubt,   kept  the  hostility  of  the 
Egyptian  people  to  them  and  their  race  from 
dying  out.     In  time  they  appear  to  have  lost 
energy    and    their   power   weakened,    while    the 
Egyptians  recovered  courage,  or  acquired  princes 
who  could  rouse  and  lead  them  with  more  success. 
A  new  outbreak  of  rebellion,  provoked,  it  was 
said,  by  an  attempt  to  force  the  native  court  at 
Thebes    to    honor    Sutekh    above    its    own    god 
Amon,   was  prolonged  obstinately  through  five 
generations,  until  the  Hyksos  gave  way  and  left 
the  country,  to  the  number  (according  to  Mane- 
tho,  as  repeated  in  the  Jewish  history  of  Josephus) 
of  240,000,  retreating  through  the  desert  toward 
Syria.    Their  expulsion  was  accomplished,  about  Expulsion 
1600  B.  C,  by  a  Theban  prince,  Aahmes,  who  Hyksos 
became  the  founder  of  a  new  Egyptian  dynasty,  B-c-1600(?) 
the  Eighteenth. 

Both  Abraham's  visit  to  Egypt  and  Joseph's 
career  in  that  country  are  supposed  to  fall  within 
the  period  of  the  Hyksos  domination.  Nothing 
yet  found  in  Egyptian  records  relates  to  Joseph, 
or  distinctly  to  his  people;  but  all  the  incidents  of 
the  story,  taken  separately,  are  true  to  ascer-  TfhTose°Z 
tained  fact.  There  were  slaves  brought  into 
Egypt  as  Joseph  was  brought;  there  were  for- 
eigners who  rose  to  Joseph's  height  of  office  under 


XXXV11-I 


64  From  Abraham  to  David 

the  pharaohs;  there  were  seven-year  famines, 
provided  against  as  Joseph  is  said  to  have  made 
provision;  there  was  a  district — a  "land  of 
Goshen" — on  the  northeastern  frontier  of  Egypt 
in  which  Semitic  nomads  were  sometimes  settled 
(and  undoubtedly  in  the  Hyksos  period),  as  the 
brethren  of  Joseph  and  their  descendants  were 
said  to  be;  and  thus  the  substance  of  the  narra- 
Genesis  tive  in  the  last  fourteen  chapters  of  Genesis  is 
well  sustained. 

Under  the  Eighteenth  Dynasty  the  Egyptian 
monarchy  entered  on  a  new  career,  in  which  sur- 
prising energies  were  shown.  For  the  first  time, 
the  arms  of  the  pharaohs  were  carried  far  into 
Asia,  especially  by  Thothmes  or  Tahutimes  I. 
and  Thothmes  III.  (16th  and  15th  centuries 
B.  C),  the  latter  of  whom  left  an  empire  which 
extended  beyond  the  Euphrates  in  the  east,  to 
Asia  Minor  in  the  north,  and  to  Ethiopia  (ancient 
Abyssinia)  in  the  south.  The  recovered  annals  of 
the  reign  of  this  most  vigorous  king  are  very  full, 
and  its  monuments  are  among  the  most  numer- 
ous and  the  most  interesting  that  were  left  by  the 
ancient  rulers  of  the  Nile.  By  the  Asiatic  con- 
quests of  the  Eighteenth  Dynasty  Egypt  seems 
to  have  been  influenced  profoundly  in  many  ways. 
The  arts  and  the  general  culture  of  Babylonia 
now  reached  the  Egyptians,  through  Syria,  as 
they  had  not  done  before.  Great  numbers  of 
Semitic  women  were  brought  into  the  country,  as 
captives  or  as  tribute,  to  become  the  wives  and 
concubines  of  men  in  the  upper  class,  and  to  exert 


Semitic  Influence  65 

a  Semitizine  influence  which  seems  to  have  be-  Semitizmg 

0  .  influence 

come  marked.  Professor  Petrie  observes  in  the 
painting  and  sculpture  on  the  monuments  a 
"striking  change  in  the  physiognomy  and  ideal 
type  of  the  upper  classes  in  the  latter  part  of  the 
Eighteenth  Dynasty"  which  he  attributes  to  this 
cause. 

Several  peaceful  reigns  followed  that  of  Thoth- 
mes  III.,  and  grand  works  of  temple-building 
were  carried  on,  most  notably  by  his  great  grand- 
son, Amenhotep  III.,  at  Luxor  and  Elephantine. 
But,  before  the  ending  of  the  reign  of  this  third 
Amenhotep,  the  Asiatic  empire  of  the  dynasty 
was  breaking  up,  and  all  attempts  to  maintain  it 
were  abandoned  by  his  son,  Amenhotep  IV.,  or 
Akh-en-Aten, — a  prince  of  philosophical  mind, 
who  nearly  wrecked  his  authority,  even  at  home, 
by  too  radical  undertakings  of  religious  and 
moral  reform.  He  seems  to  have  sought  to  intro-  Amenhotep 
duce  a  supreme  deification  of  the  sun,  not  accord-  IV-°rAkh- 

r  t  '  en-Atenr 

ing  to  the  older  crude  notions  of  sun-worship,  but  Petrie, 
as  the  radiant  source  of  life-giving  and  world-  ^gypt, 
sustaining  energies,  all  of  which  are  described  in  2:2°5-233 
a  remarkable  hymn,  composed  during  his  reign, 
with  a  fullness  and  accuracy  that  come  close  to 
the  scientific  knowledge  of  light  and  heat  at  the 
present   day.     The    royal    philosopher   and    re- 
former was  too  much  in  advance  of  his  time.    It 
was    inevitable    that    the    conservatism    in    the 
Egyptian  character  should  be  roused  against  him 
by  the  priesthood  of  the  ancient  cult,  and  prove 
stronger  than  he.    He  was  forced  to  quit  Thebes, 


66  From  Abraham  to  David 

and  he  then  built  a  new  capital  farther  north,  the 
ruins  of  which,  known  as  Tel  el-Amarna,  yielded, 
a  few  years  ago,  the  most  remarkable  discovery 
of  ancient  historical  archives  yet  made  on 
Egyptian  soil. 

On  quitting  Thebes,  Akh-en-Aten  had  taken 
with  him  to  his  new  capital,  amongst  other 
archives  of  the  government,  a  mass  of  the  foreign 
correspondence  of  his  own  reign  and  that  of  his 
father,  Amenhotep  III.  In  1887,  some  peasants 
who  were  digging  in  the  Tel  el-Amarna  ruin  for 
bricks,  or  for  antique  objects  to  sell  to  tourists, 
came  upon  a  store  of  this  correspondence,  in- 
scribed in  cuneiform  characters  and  in  the  Baby- 
lonian manner,  on  tablets  of  clay.  Unfortunately 
The  Tel  el-  the  store  thus   brought  to  light  became  much 

Amarna  i      i      r  •  i  •  1 

tablets.        scattered    before    its    extraordinary    value    was 
Winckier,     found  out;   but  more  than  three  hundred  tablets 

lei  el-  ' 

Amama  have  been  brought  to  the  knowledge  of  scholars 
and  most  of  them  have  been  read.  Many  of  the 
letters  contained  are  from  Egyptian  governors 
and  vassal  princes  in  Canaan  and  Syria,  reporting 
the  troubled  condition  of  those  countries  during 
the  decline  and  overthrow  of  the  pharaonic  rule. 
Others  are  from  kings  of  Babylonia,  Assyria, 
Mitanni,  and  the  invading  Hittites,  the  three 
last  named  being  monarchies  of  recent  appearance 
in  the  eastern  world.  Intimate  relations  between 
Egypt  and  Mitanni  had  been  formed,  the  Mitan- 
The  _  nian  royal  family  having  given  princesses  in  mar- 
kingdom  riage  to  both  Amenhotep  III.  and  his  son. 
Remarkable  light  on  the  whole  state  of  things  in 


Ramses  If.,  the  Oppressor  of  Israel  67 

eastern  Asia  is  supplied  by  these  letters,  and 
especially  in  their  revelation  of  the  activity  of 
correspondence  as  well  as  trade,  and  of  the  extent 
to  which  a  knowledge  of  the  Babylonian  language 
and  script  prevailed  in  that  age. 

Akh-en-Aten  left  no  sons,  and  three  husbands 
of  his  daughters  reigned  after  him  in  succession; 
the  last  two  of  whom  renounced  his  religious 
ideas,  abandoned  his  new  capital,  and  submitted 
themselves  to  the  priests.  Then  the  dynasty 
came  to  an  end,  and  the  throne  was  taken  by  the 
commander  of  the  army,  who  failed,  however,  to 
found  a  new  line  of  kings.  That  was  done  by  the 
next  pharaoh,  Ramses  I.,  whose  reign  was  short. 
His  son,  Seti  I.,  and  his  grandson,  Ramses  II.  (the  Nineteenth 
Sesostris  of  Greek  legends),  reopened  wars  of  con-  ynasty 
quest  in  Asia,  and  reestablished,  partly,  for  a 
time,  the  empire  won  and  lost  by  the  previous 

Ramses  TT. 

dynasty  in   Canaan   and   beyond.     The  second  (Sesostris)', 
Ramses  is  boastful  in  his  inscriptions  of  great  lith-isth 
military  exploits;    but  the  dominion  he  regained  centunes 
took  in  but  half  of  Syria,  and  fell  far  short  of  that  Sayce, 
acquired  by  Thothmes  III.     He  fought  the  for-  %**/£ 
midable  Hittites  with  some  success,  but  was  glad  Hebrews, 
to  come  to  terms  of  peace  and  to  make  a  Hittite 
princess  his  queen.    His  long  reign  of  sixty-seven 
years  is  made  more  notable  by  the  great  number 
of  cities  he  founded,  the  temples  he  built  or  en- 
larged, and  the  statues  he  set  up,  than  by  his 
wars.     In  these  works  there  is  no  doubt  that  he 
used    forced    labor    tyrannically,    and    that    the 
Israelites,  still  dwelling  in  the  "land  of  Goshen," 


68  From  Abraham  to  David 

were  among  the  subjects  thus  oppressed.  Since 
the  excavation  in  1883  of  some  ruins  on  the  east- 
ern frontier  of  Egypt,  which  proved  to  be  those 
of  a  "store  city"  built  by  Ramses  II.  and  called 
Pi- turn  (the  Pithom  of  Exodus),  there  has  been 
The  no  question  that  he  was  the  pharaoh  of  the  op- 

pharaoh       pression  recorded  in  Jewish  history.    Whether  the 

of  the  *  ,    . 

oppression    exodus  of  the  Israelites  from  Egypt  occurred  in 

Exodusfi  the  reign  of  his  son  Merenptah  or  Meneptah,  or 
at  a  little  later  time,  when  feeble  princes  held  the 
throne  for  brief  terms  and  much  disorder  pre- 
vailed, remains  to  be  ascertained.  In  the  fifth 
year  of  Merenptah,  Egypt  was  assailed  by  a  most 
formidable  confederation  of  enemies,  who 
swarmed  to  the  attack  from  all  parts  of  the 
southern,  eastern  and  northeastern  coasts  of  the 
Mediterranean.  They  were  heroically  beaten 
off;  but  the  monarchy  was  sorely  weakened;  its 
Asiatic  provinces  were  lost  again,  never  to  be 
recovered;  and  a  majority  of  recent  historians 
look  on  this  as  most  probably  the  time  when  the 

of  Lad U  Children  of  Israel  escaped  from  the  yoke  of 
bondage  they  had  worn  so  long. 

In  the  last  years  of  the  Nineteenth  Dynasty, 
Egypt  is  shown  to  have  been  in  an  evil  state. 
Then  the  throne  passed  to  a  new  family  which 

Dynasty      claimed  descent  from  Ramses,   and  both  order 

and  vigor  appear  to  have  been  restored  briefly  by 

its  first  two   kings,   Setnekht  and   Ramses   III. 

B  C  i"oo  Tne  latter'  wnose  reign  began  about  1200  B.  C, 

(?)        or  not  many  years  before  that  date,  defended  his 

kingdom    with     success     against    another    con- 


H 

U 

W 


T3 


Decay  of  Nation  69 

federated  attack  like  that  which  imperiled  it  in 
Merenptah's  time.  The  invaders,  coming  mostly 
from  Asia  Minor  and  the  Greek  islands  and 
coasts,  had  broken  and  scattered  the  Hittites  and 
swept  over  Syria  and  Canaan.  Ramses  III. 
routed  them  in  a  desperate  battle,  fought  on 
land  and  by  sea,  and  drove  them  back  into 
northern  Syria,  restoring  Egyptian  authority  for 
a  short  time  up  to  the  line  of  the  empire  of  Ram- 
ses II.    But  he  was  the  last  of  the  pharaohs  whose  _ 

r  m  m         Decay  of 

rule  extended  beyond  Egyptian  soil.    After  him  the  nation 
the  final  decay  of  the  great  and  venerable  nation 
set  in,  and  not  much  that  is  notable  appears  in  its 
history  during  the  next  five  hundred  years. 

Babylonia 

While  Egypt  had  been  going  through  the  ex- 
periences sketched  briefly  in  this  chapter,  a  great 
shifting  of  scenes,  as  well  as  a  changing  of  actors, 
had  taken  place  on  the  other  grand  stage  of  early 
history,  in  the  Babylonian  valley.  Babylon  was 
still  what  Hammurabi  had  made  her,  the  queen 
of  the  world's  capitals,  in  splendor,  in  culture,  in 
wealth,  in  the  subtle  influence  of  the  civilization 
which  she  centered  in  herself;  but  political  move- 
ments and  interests  in  and  around  the  great 
valley  had  been  ranging  themselves  on  lines  that 
ran  from  other  seats  of  power  as  well  as  from  her 
own. 

The  long  and  notable  reign  of  Hammurabi  was 
followed  apparently  by  a  noble  period  of  prosper- 
ous peace,  lasting  through  many  generations;    a 


7<d  From  Abraham  to  David 

Prosperity    period  in  which  arts  and  letters  were  cultivated 
culture        carefully,  schools  flourished,  libraries  were  col- 
lected, commerce  was  active,  and  the  dominion  of 
Babylon,  established  more  by  intellect  and  learn- 
ing than  by  arms,  was  exercised  tranquilly  from 
the    Tigris    to    the    Mediterranean    Sea.      This 
general  fact  seems  assured;  but  of  detailed  events 
in  the  time  described  almost  nothing  has  been 
learned.    The  peaceful  period  ended  at  some  time 
in  the  eighteenth  century  B.  C,  when  Babylonia 
was  again  overcome  by  a  body  of  invaders  from 
Elam,  called  Kassites  in  the  inscriptions,  and  for 
conquest      nearly  six  centuries  its  throne  was  held  by  a 
domination  dynasty  of  Kassite  kings.     But  Babylonia  sub- 
B;c.  dued    its    conquerors,    as    Egypt    subdued    the 

Hyksos,  by  its  irresistible  civilizing  force.  They 
fitted  themselves  to  its  grooves,  imitated  its  ways 
and  manners,  assimilated  its  culture,  and  came 
in  time  to  be  Babylonians  themselves. 

The  great  old  nation  could  not  fail,  however, 
to  lose  something  in  the  process  of  civilizing  its 
conquerors,  and  it  certainly  did  so  in  political 
power  and  prestige.  We  have  seen  how,  begin- 
ning in  the  sixteenth  century  B.  C,  the  Egyptian 
monarchs  of  the  Eighteenth  Dynasty  pursued 
careers  of  conquest  in  Canaan,  Syria,  and  Meso- 
potamia, where  the  lordship  of  Babylonia  had 
been  recognized,  either  fully  or  partly,  with  some 
interruptions,  for  more  than  two  thousand  years. 
In  older  times  this,  probably,  could  not  have 
occurred  without  collision  between  the  empire  on 
the  Euphrates  and  that  on  the  Nile;  but  the  first 


I8th-I2th 
centuries 


Babylonia  Under  the  Kassites  71 

effectual  resistance  encountered  by  the  Egyptians 
in  their  Asiatic  campaigns  was  when  Ramses  II. 
reached  northern  Syria,  where  a  power  new  in 
history  had  obtained  its  principal  seat.     It  was 
that  of  the  people  called  the  Kheta  by  the  Egyp- 
tians,— the    Hittites    of    the    Bible, — concerning 
whom  there  has  been  much  controversy  among  Hittites 
oriental    scholars    in    late    years.      Monuments 
judged  to  be  the  work  of  the  same  people,  bearing 
inscriptions  in  hieroglyphs  not  yet  deciphered  and 
in  a  language  not  yet  classed,  are  traced  through 
Cappadocia  and  Asia  Minor,  indicating  either  an 
empire  that  was  widespread  or  the  transfer  of  a 
quite    civilized    people    from    the    western    and 
northern  to  the  eastern  and  southern  sides  of  the 
Taurus  and  Anti-Taurus  mountain  ranges.   Some 
oriental  scholars  are  unconvinced  that  the  similar 
monuments  in  Asia  Minor  and  Syria  are  the  work  TheHittite 
of  one  and  the  same  race.    Others  who  conclude  questlon 
differently  are  divided  in  opinion  as  to  whether 
the  Hittites  were  of  Semitic,  Aryan  or  Mongolian 
stock.     Professor  Sergi  and  his  followers  do  not 
hesitate  to  recognize  them  as  a  branch  of  the 
"Mediterranean  race"  which  developed,  in  their 
belief,  all  the  early  states  of  organized  society  and 
historical  progress  on  the  shores  of  the  great  mid- 
land sea.    The  Hittite  question  is  far  from  being 
solved,  and  nothing  has  become  clear  but  the  fact 
that  the  people  thus  named  bore  a  part  of  con- 
siderable importance  in  events  that  touch  the 
early   history   of   eastern   Mediterranean    lands. 
Their  power  appears  to  have  been  broken  last- 


72 

(See  pages 
67-69) 


Mitanni 


From  Abraham  to  David 

ingly  by  the  invasive  movements  from  Asia 
Minor  and  the  Greek  lands  which  swept  through 
Syria  and  Canaan  to  Egypt  in  the  reigns  of 
Merenptah  and  Ramses  III. 

At  some  time  within  the  period  we  are  survey- 
ing, the  small  kingdom  called  Mitanni,  of  which 
little  is  known,  but  which  must  have  been  a  seat 
of  considerable  culture,  had  arisen  in  the  north- 
western part  of  the  Mesopotamian  valley, 
between  the  Euphrates  and  the  Tigris.  The  let- 
ters from  its  kings,  found  at  Tel  el-Amarna,  as 
mentioned  already,  addressed  to  the  pharaohs  of 
Egypt,  Amenhotep  III.  and  IV.,  who  had  married 
Mitannian  princesses,  are  the  principal  records 
it  has  left,  so  far  as  known. 


B.  C.  17th 
century(?) 


The  Rise  of  Assyria 

But  the  most  important  change  in  the  great 
valley  of  the  two  rivers  proceeded  from  the  rise  of 
a  new  Semitic  power,  which  had  its  first  seat  in 
the  city  of  Asshur  and  took  the  name  of  Assyria 
therefrom.  It  is  supposed  to  have  grown  up  from 
a  Babylonian  colony,  planted  at  an  early  time  in 
the  north,  on  the  Tigris,  and  long  subject  or 
tributary  to  the  Babylonian  kings.  Its  first 
rulers  were  priest-princes,  who  seem  to  have 
assumed  the  royal  title,  with  probable  inde- 
pendence, at  some  time  in  the  seventeenth  century 
B.  C.  This  was  after  the  Kassites  had  mas- 
tered Babylon,  and  its  ancient  power  was 
undoubtedly  slipping  from  their  hands.  Of  the 
little  that  is  known  of  succeeding  events  there  is 


centuries(?) 


Babylon  and  Assyria  73 

nothing  to  note  until  about  at  the  end  of  the 
fifteenth  or  beginning  of  the  fourteenth  century 
B.  C,  when  the  Assyrians  invaded  and  subju- 
gated Babylonia,  placing  a  grandson  of  their  own  Assyrian 
king  on  its  throne.     The  relations  between  the  0f  Baby- 
two  kingdoms  for  some  generations  afterwards  l°m£ 
are  obscure.    Evidently  the  supremacy  of  Assyria  isth-nth 
had  not  been  established  fully,  for  Babylon  was 
captured  again  in  the  early  years  of  the  thirteenth 
century  B.  C,  and  the  Assyrian  monarch  then 
took  to  himself  the  ancient  title  of  king  of  Sumer 
and   Accad.     His   dominion   had   by   this   time 
become  much  extended,  down  the  eastern  borders 
of  the  Tigris,  and  westwardly,  between  the  two 
rivers,  where  the  Aramaeans  were  brought  into 
subjection,  and  the  rich  trade  they  carried  on,  to 
and  from  the  Mediterranean  and  Asia  Minor, 
came  under  Assyrian  control.     This  expansion 
had  been  the  work  of  several  vigorous  kings,  the 
best   known  of  whom   is   Shalmaneser   I.,   who 
founded  a  new  capital  at  Calah,  so  near  to  the 
more  ancient  city  of  Nineveh   that  the  latter  Nineveh 
absorbed  it  as  a  suburb  in  later  times  and  took 
the  seat  of  government  to  itself. 

Babylon  and  Assyria 

After  Shalmaneser  and  his  son,  who  proved  to 
be  as  energetic  as  himself,  there  was  a  period  of 
Assyrian  decline.  Babylon  regained  independ- 
ence, and  was  again  the  stronger  power,  attacking 
Assyria  and  recovering  more  or  less  of  the  terri- 
tory taken  by  the  latter  in  recent  years.     But 


Shalman- 
eser I 


74 


Nebuchad- 
nezzar I. 
B.  C.  12th 
century 


Tiglathpi- 
leser  I. 
B.  C.  1120- 
uoo(?) 


From  Abraham  to  David 

these  aggressions  of  the  parent  nation  were 
checked  ere  long,  by  a  reawakening  of  energy  in 
the  younger  state.  Then  Babylon,  in  its  turn, 
received  fresh  stimulation,  from  a  new  line  of 
kings.  The  Kassite  dynasty,  feeble  and  de- 
throned several  times,  was  extinguished  finally 
in  the  latter  half  of  the  twelfth  century  B.  C,  and 
was  succeeded  by  a  Semite  dynasty,  founded  by 
Nebuchadnezzar  I.,  who  led  victorious  armies  in 
several  campaigns,  northward,  eastward  and 
westward,  but  gained  nothing  that  he  could  hold. 
His  successors  were  overcome  in  their  contention 
with  a  warrior  greater  than  any  who  had  ruled  in 
Assyria  before.  This  was  Tiglathpileser  I.,  a 
monarch  of  undoubted  superiority  in  statesman- 
ship as  well  as  in  war.  His  numerous  and  success- 
ful campaigns  extended  the  bounds  of  Assyrian 
empire  widely  on  the  north  and  northwest,  be- 
yond the  mountains,  into  Cappadocia  and 
Armenia,  and  apparently  to  some  point  on  the 
Phoenician  coast.  He  then  turned  upon  Baby- 
lonia, which  challenged  him  by  an  attack,  and 
compelled  its  new  family  of  kings  to  acknowledge 
vassalage  to  the  Assyrian  throne.  After  Tiglath- 
pileser another  long  period  of  inaction  in  the 
monarchy  appears  to  have  ensued,  and  little  is 
known  of  its  state  for  nearly  two  hundred  years. 

Aramaean  Kingdoms  in  Syria 

When  Tiglathpileser  I.  invaded  Syria  and 
Canaan  he  found  no  organized  nationality  in 
either  that  could   offer  much   resistance  to  his 


Damascus 


Aramaeans  in  Syria  75 

arms;  but  two  centuries  later,  when  his  succes- 
sors were  roused  again  to  fresh  undertakings  of 
conquest,  they  were  faced  by  new  forces,  politi- 
cally established  in  both  regions  of  the  west.  The 
Aramaeans  of  Mesopotamia  had  taken  possession 
of  the  territory  of  the  fallen  Hittite  empire,  and 
founded  several  city  kingdoms, — Zobah,  Damas-  zobah 
cus,  and  others, — rivals,  at  war  with  each  other, 
but  readily  leagued  against  a  common  foe.  The 
Israelites,  after  escaping  from  Egypt,  had  sub- 
jugated and  occupied  most  of  the  lands  of  Gilead 
and  Canaan  (east  and  west  of  the  Jordan),  and  a 
powerful  kingdom  had  been  formed  among  their 
tribes.  Of  events  connected  with  the  rise  of  the 
Aramaean  kingdoms,  almost  nothing  is  known; 
but  the  chronicles  which  the  Hebrews  wrote  and 
preserved  are  more  complete  than  any  others  that 
have  reached  us  from  equally  ancient  times,  and 
better  known  to  the  world  at  large. 

The  Exodus  of  Israel 

Probably,  as  stated  before,  the  Exodus  of 
Israel  from  Egypt  took  place  in  the  reign  of  the 
pharaoh  Merenptah,  and  its  time  was  most  likely 
within  the  first  half  of  the  thirteenth  century 
B.  C.  Some  reckonings  would  date  it  at  1277  B  c  h 
B.  C.  The  story  as  told  in  the  Hebrew  Scrip-  century 
tures,  of  the  march  of  the  host  led  by  Moses  to 
Mount  Sinai  (the  locality  of  which  is  still  in  dis- 
pute); of  the  giving  of  laws  to  the  now  inde-  f^^"' 
pendent  community;  of  the  building  of  the  Numbers, 
tabernacle  and  of  the  prescribing  of  rites  for  the 


Exodus, 
xiii-xxxix. 


l-xiv,  xxm 


j6  From  Abraham  to  David 

worship  of  Yahveh  (Jehovah)  as  the  acknowl- 
edged God  of  Israel;  of  the  removal  of  the  camp 
from  the  desert  or  wilderness  of  Sinai  to  that  of 
Paran;  of  the  halt  at  Kadesh-barnea  (which  has 
been  identified  with  the  spring  now  called  Ain 
Qadis,  some  fifty  miles  south  of  Beersheba);  of 
the  further  Mosaic  legislation  recorded  there;  of 
the  first  attempt,  from  Kadesh-barnea,  to  force 
an  entrance  into  Canaan,  and  of  its  disastrous 
repulse;  of  the  long  nomadic  sojourn  in  the  wil- 
derness thereafter,  renewing  strength  for  another 
attack, — the  Biblical  tale  is  familiar  to  all.  But 
one  significant  fact  to  be  noted  before  we  pass  on, 
is  the  fact  that  almost  no  influence  from  Egypt, 
after  centuries  of  residence  in  that  land,  appears 
in  the  thought  or  action  of  these  people,  when 
their  religious  institutions  were  constructed.  It 
is  the  Babylonian  mother-land  of  their  race  which 
commands  nearly  every  important  idea  in  their 
minds.  "Babylonian  influence,"  remarks  Profes- 
Babyionian  sor  Sayce,  "is  deeply  imprinted  on  the  Mosaic 
origin  of      iaws.    The  institution  of  the  Sabbath  went  back 

Mosaic  •        if 

institutions  to  the  Sumerian  days  of  Chaldsea ;  the  name  itseli 
was  of  Babylonian  origin.  The  great  festivals  of 
Israel  find  their  counterparts  on  the  banks  of  the 
Euphrates.  Even  the  year  of  Jubilee  was  a  Baby- 
lonian institution,  and  Gudea,  the  priest-king  of 
Lagas,  tells  us  that  when  he  kept  it  the  slave 
became  'for  seven  days  the  equal  of  his  master.' 
It  was  only  the  form  and  application  of  the  old 
institutions  that  were  changed  in  the  Levitical 
legislation.    They  were  adapted  to  the  needs  of 


The  Exodus  of  Israel  jj 

Israel,  and  associated  with  the  events  of  its  his-  Sayce, 

harly 

tory.  But  in  themselves  they  were  all  of  Baby-  Israel,  269 
Ionian  descent."  In  another  work,  the  same 
writer  says:  "Babylonia  also  had  its  arks,  its 
mercy-seats,  and  its  cherubim.  .  .  .  The 
parallelism  between  the  temples  and  ritual  of 
Israel  and  of  Babylonia  is  indeed  close.  The 
temple  itself  was  of  the  same  square  or  rectangu-  Sayce, 
lar  form.     .     .     .     The  Israelitish  altars  found  ]Larly     , 

tit  story  oj 

their  counterpart  in  Babylonia.     So,  too,  did  the  theHebrews, 
table  of  shewbread,  which  similarly  stood  in  the  I9  7 
sanctuaries  of  the  Chaldsean  deities.    The  sacri- 
fices and  offerings  were  also  similar." 

So  soon  as  they  had  passed  the  western  arm  of 
the  Red  Sea,  the  Israelites  were  among  people 
closely    kindred    to    themselves;     people    who 
claimed  descent  from  Abraham,  but  not  through 
Jacob  and  his  sons.     The  first  with  whom  they 
came  in  contact  were  the  Amalekites,  a  wild  tribe  Numbers, 
of    Bedouin    Arabs, — desert    wanderers,    never  X1V' 2S' 4S 
tamed  by  civilization, — who  attacked  them  in 
the  first  stages  of  their  march  and  were  repulsed. 
The  Amalekites  were  considered  to  be  a  branch 
of  the  Edomites,  reputed  descendants  of  Esau, 
Jacob's   brother,   and   bound,   therefore,   to   the 
Children  of  Israel  by  the  strongest  ties.    The  ter- 
ritory of  the  Edomites  was  in  the  mountains  of  Edomites, 
Seir,  stretching  from  the  Dead  Sea  to  the  Gulf  of  Xxxvi.W' 
Akaba,  and  the  route  of  the  rich  trade  between  Deuteron- 
the  Red  Sea  and  the  north  was  in  their  hands. 
This  gave  them  wealth  and  made  them  a  people 
of  settled  habits  of  life.     During  their  long  so- 


7*> 


From  Abraham  to  David 


Numbers, 
xx,  14-22 


Moabites 
and  Am- 
monites, 
Genesis, 
xix,  30-38. 
Numbers, 
xxi,  4;  xxiv, 

25. 

Deuteron- 
omy, ii,8-37 


Gilead 


journ  in  the  desert  of  Paran,  the  Israelites  were  on 
the  borders  of  Edom,  and  the  kindred  people  seem 
to  have  remained  on  friendly  terms.  But  when, 
after  years  of  waiting,  Moses  consented  to  a  new 
attempt  on  the  part  of  his  followers  to  enter  the 
Promised  Land,  and  to  do  so  from  the  eastern 
side  of  the  Jordan,  the  king  of  Edom  refused  pas- 
sage through  his  dominions  to  the  Israelite  host, 
and  compelled  it  to  make  a  long  circuit  south- 
ward to  the  Gulf.  Moving  thence  northward, 
along  the  eastern  skirts  of  Edom,  the  invaders 
reached  a  kingdom  founded  by  another  branch  of 
their  numerous  kindred,  on  the  shores  of  the  Dead 
Sea.  This  was  the  kingdom  of  the  Moabites, 
whose  ancestress,  according  to  the  narrative  in 
the  book  of  Genesis,  was  the  elder  of  the  daugh- 
ters of  Abraham's  nephew,  Lot.  Descendants 
from  the  younger  daughter,  according  to  the 
same  tradition,  had  formed  another  nation,  the 
Ammonites,  whose  kingdom  joined  that  of  Moab 
on  the  north.  Apparently,  the  Moabites  and 
Ammonites  feared  their  cousins  of  Israel,  and 
accepted  them  as  allies  against  the  Amorites, 
who,  lately,  had  dispossessed  them  of  important 
parts  of  their  lands.  The  alliance  proved  over- 
whelming to  the  Amorite  king  Sihon;  his  king- 
dom was  destroyed,  and  Israel  appropriated  the 
territory  he  had  taken  from  Moab  and  Ammon. 
Further  conquests  in  Gilead  gave  a  home  to  the 
invaders  for  some  time, — how  long  is  not  told. 
But  this  was  not  the  Promised  Land, — the 
coveted    Canaan,   which   stretched   before   their 


Conquest  of  Canaan  79 

eyes,  beyond  the  Jordan,  looking  west.     Before  Jrh0em;sed 
they  crossed  the  river  Moses  died,  and  Joshua  Land  oi 
became  the  leader  of  the  next  advance. 

Probably  Canaan,  at  the  time  of  the  Israelite 
invasion,  was  the  seat  of  a  civilization  advanced, 
intellectually  and  materially,  as  far  as  any  to  be 
found  within  the  range  of  the  high  culture  which 
Babylonia  had  spread  abroad.  The  soil  was 
highly  cultivated,  many  skilled  and  refined  arts 
were  practiced,  and  an  active  trade  was  carried 
on.  The  cities  were  populous  and  rich.  The 
country  had  had  time  to  recover  from  the  de- 
structive great  invasions  that  overwhelmed  it  in 
the  preceding  century,  when  assailants  from  Asia 
Minor  and  the  islands  of  Greece  reached  Egypt, 
through  Syria  and  Canaan,  as  related  above.  As  6^69^' 
the  result  of  those  invasions,  it  had  been  set  free 
from  Egyptian  rule,  and  the  aggressive  Hittite 
power  in  Syria  had  been  destroyed.  A  remnant 
of  the  northern  invaders  had  secured  a  footing  in 
five  cities  on  the  southern  coast  of  Canaan;  but  The 
these  Philistines  (who  caused  Canaan  to  be  Philistines 
known  in  later  times  as  Palestine)  had  not  yet 
become  formidable  intruders.  There  seems  to 
have  been  peace  and  prosperity  for  more  than  a 
generation  in  the  land,  with  consequent  increase 
of  luxury  and  corrupting  ways  of  life.  The  people 
were  lacking,  like  most  Semitic  races,  in  political 
capacity,  and  no  union  among  them  was  formed. 
Each  considerable  town  was  the  seat  of  some 
petty  principality,  and  no  centralizing  authority 
existed  to  organize  a  common  defense.     It  was 


80  From  Abraham  to  David 

this  state  of  things  which  enabled  the  Israelites 
to  conquer  the  land. 

Critically  studied,  the  Old  Testament  narrative 
of  the  conquest  of  Canaan  is  not  clear,  and  differ- 
ent writers  have  drawn  from  it  very  different 
conclusions  as  to  the  sequence  of  events  and  the 
action  of  different  tribes.     In  a  sketch  of  this 
nature  it  is  impossible  to  show  the  questions  in- 
First  stage    volved,  and  all  detail  must  be  passed.     It  can 
conquest.     onty  be  said  that  the  war,  ruthless  and  unsparing, 
Joshua,       \n  fa  first  stage,  under  Joshua,  appears  to  have 
lasted  seven  years,  at  the  end  of  which  time  the 
conquest  of  the  country  was  far  from  complete; 
but  enough  mastery  of  the  native  population  had 
been  gained  to  give  each  tribe  a  footing,  and  to 
apportion  to  each  the  territory  in  which  it  was 
expected  to  make  its  settlement  secure.    As  the 

Judges/1,28      .  .  .  j    •       t     J  (( •*. 

situation  is  stated  in  Judges,  it  came  to  pass, 
when  Israel  was  strong,  that  they  put  the  Canaan- 
ites  to  tribute,  and  did  not  utterly  drive  them 
out."  Many  Biblical  students  find  reason  to 
believe  that  several  of  the  tribes  named  as  be- 
longing to  Israel  in  the  settlement  were  composed 
in  whole  or  part  of  Canaanites,  who  had  leagued 
themselves  with  and  been  adopted  into  the 
Hebrew  confederation. 

In  the  partition  of  the  country,  the  tribes  of 

tioningof     Reuben  and  Gad  and  half  of  the  tribe  of  Manas- 

/oXT'       seh  were  giyen  tne  territory  taken  on  the  eastern 

xiv-xis        side  of  the  Jordan.    On  the  western  side,  the  tribe 

of  Naphtali  went  farthest  northward,   on   and 

above  the  shores  of  Lake  Gennesareth.     Asher 


Settlement  of  the  Tribes  8i 

claimed  the  neighboring  coast  of  the  Mediterra- 
nean, which  the  Phoenicians  held,  and  from  the 
important  ports  of  which  they  could  not  be  dis- 
lodged. Between  the  Phoenicians  and  the  Philis-  Renan, 
tines,  who  possessed  valuable  seaports  at  the  f£lpy 1 
south,  there  lay  a  strip  of  coast  without  harbors  of  Israel, 
which  may  have  been  reached  by  the  allotments  ■&_& 
of  Zebulon,  Issachar,  the  half  tribe  of  Manasseh, 
Ephraim  and  Dan,  but  which  had  no  commercial 
worth.  The  domain  of  Ephraim  and  that  of 
Benjamin,  immediately  south  of  it  (the  latter 
including  Jerusalem,  not  yet  taken  from  the 
enemy),  were  central  and  became  the  region  of 
most  importance  in  subsequent  history.  South 
of  the  lands  of  the  tribe  of  Benjamin  came  the 
large  portion  of  the  tribe  of  Judah,  between  the 
narrow  dominion  of  the  Philistines  and  the  Dead 
Sea.  This  tribe  is  represented  to  have  been  com- 
posed, more  or  less,  of  adopted  families,  not 
Hebraic  in  blood,  which  was  no  doubt  the  cause 
of  a  growing  alienation  between  Judah  and  the 
other  tribes  that  constituted  Israel.  The  tribe  of 
Simeon  was  given  lands  in  the  extreme  southwest, 
but  appears  to  have  been  so  diminished  in  the 
wars  that  the  remnant  united  with  Judah  and 
was  absorbed.  The  tribe  of  Dan,  failing  to  make 
head  against  its  Philistine  neighbors,  was  ab- 
sorbed likewise  by  the  stronger  Judah,  excepting 
a  band  which  migrated  northward  and  surprised 
a  Phoenician  town.  The  Levites  lost  their  tribal 
existence  entirely  and  were  destined  to  become  a 
priestly  caste. 


82  From  Abraham  to  David 

Israel  under  the  Judges 

After  Joshua,  for  a  long  period,  the  Israelites 
had  no  general  leader,  nor  does  there  seem  to  have 
been  any  regular  and  established  authority  in  the 
several  tribes;    but  tribal  chieftains  were  raised 
up  from  time  to  time,  who  were  accepted  as  both 
war-captains  and  rulers,  and  who  received  a  title 
equivalent  to  that  of  Judge.     In  this  period,  of 
long  but  uncertain  duration,  different  sections  of 
the    tribes    were    engaged  in    repeated    wars    of 
defense,   with   one   enemy   after   another,   often 
JudgesMii    defeated  and  temporarily  mastered,   but  rarely 
receiving   any   general    support.     The   northern 
tribes  were  subjugated  for  some  years  by  one  of 
the  Aramaean  kings.     The  southern  tribes  were 
harassed  by  the  Moabites  on  one  side  and  by  the 
Philistines  on  the  other.    Then  the  Canaanites  of 
the   midland   and   the   north   rose   against  their 
Deborah,      Hebrew    neighbors,    and    the    latter,    after   long 
Gideon,        humiliation   and   suffering,   were   rallied   by   the 
Judges*       prophetess     Deborah,    "the    Jeanne     d'Arc     of 
Israel,"  and  delivered  by  the  leadership  of  Barak. 
To  beat  off  an  attack  from  the  Midianites  and 
Amalekites  of  the  Arabian  desert,  the  northern 
tribes   found   a    capable   captain   in   Gideon,   of 
Manasseh.      An    invasion    of    the    Ammonites, 
repelled  by  the  skill  and  valor  of  Jephthah,  of 
Gilead,  led  to  a  bloody  quarrel  between  his  fol- 
lowers and  the  Ephraimites,  and  almost  to  the 
destruction  of  the  latter  tribe. 

But  most  serious  of  all   the   conflicts   of  the 


iv-zn 


The  Founding  of  the  Hebrew  Monarchy  83 

Hebrew  people  was  that  with  the  Philistines,  in 
the  southwest.    After  those  adventurous  rivals  of 
Israel  in  the  contest  for  Canaan  had  driven  the  Samson. 
tribe  of  Dan  from  their  borders,  and  after  Sam-  J-  g"- 
son,  the  herculean  champion  of  the  Danites,  had  j  Samuel, 

iv-vi 

fallen  into  their  hands  and  had  come  to  his  tragic 
death,  they  became  bolder  in  their  aggressions, 
and  attacked  the  central  tribe  of  Ephraim  with 
appalling  success.  The  Israelites  were  defeated 
and  fearfully  slaughtered  in  a  desperate  battle;  Ph{i;st;ne 
the  ark  of  the  covenant  was  captured  and  taken  domination 
away  to  the  Philistine  temple  of  Dagon;  and 
Israel,  throughout  most  of  the  territory  west  of 
Jordan,  became  subject  to  the  Philistines  for  a 
number  of  years. 

The  Hebrew  Monarchy 

This  experience  proved  final  and  effective  in  its 
teaching  of  the  need  of  a  national  union  of  the 
tribes  under  one  governing  head.    They  were  now 
drawn  together,  not  only  by  their  common  hu- 
miliation, but  by  the  great  personal  influence  of 
the   prophet   Samuel,   who  won   authority  over 
them  as  both  priest  and  judge.     When  Samuel 
grew  old  they  demanded  that  he  should  choose 
for  them  a  king,  and  he  yielded  unwillingly  to    a^ud". 
their  wish.     Thus   the  Hebrew   monarchy  was  i-Hi.viii-xv 
founded,  by  the  anointing  of  Saul.     The  rising 
against  the  Philistine  garrisons  which  followed, 
under  Saul's  leadership,  but  most  inspired  by  the  Saul 
valor  of  the  king's  heroic  and  noble  son  Jonathan, 
had  considerable  success;  but  a  state  of  national 


84 


David 


/  Samuel, 
xvi-xxx 


From  Abraham  to  David 

freedom  was  not  attained.  The  attainment  was 
made  impossible,  indeed,  by  a  breach  that  soon 
occurred  between  Saul  and  Samuel,  the  blame  for 
which  seems  chargeable  more  to  the  prophet  than 
to  the  king. 

And  now  the  most  famous  figure  in  Hebrew 
legend  and  history,  after  that  of  Moses,  comes 
into  the  tale:  the  shepherd  lad,  David,  poet  and 
singer,  brilliant,  beautiful  and  brave, — fitted  in 
all  ways  to  charm,  to  win  and  to  lead.  Secretly 
anointed  by  the  masterful  prophet-priest;  set 
upon  a  path  of  hidden  rivalry  with  the  uncon- 
scious king;  introduced  to  the  royal  household  as 
one  who  may  cheer  the  moody  monarch  with  his 
harp  and  song;  captivating  the  heart  of  the  king, 
and  of  Jonathan,  the  knightly  prince,  and  of 
Michal,  the  king's  daughter,  whom  he  weds; — it 
is  so  that  the  beginning  of  his  career  is  told. 
Then  jealousy  is  kindled  in  Saul's  heart,  by  the 
fame  and  popularity  of  this  too  fascinating  mem- 
ber of  his  house.  Suspicion  follows  jealousy,  and 
wrath  because  of  the  faithfulness  of  Jonathan, 
who  cleaves  to  his  friend.  David,  fleeing  from 
the  king's  attempts  to  slay  him,  becomes  the 
chief  of  a  band  of  outlaws,  free  lances,  who  finally 
enter  the  service  of  a  Philistine  prince,  of  Gath; 
and  this  while  Philistines  and  Israelites  are  still 
at  war.  Though  David  is  not  shown  to  have 
fought  his  own  countrymen,  in  the  ranks  of  their 
enemies,  the  biography  thus  far  is  not  ennobling 
to  his  fame. 

Saul's  death  by  his  own  hand,  after  a  disastrous 


King  David  85 

battle  with  the  Philistines,  in  which  three  of  his 
sons,    including    Jonathan,    were    slain,    opened 
David's  path  to  the  throne;    but  only  his  own  David, 
tribe  of  Judah  acknowledged  his  kingship  at  first.  ju'Jfh° 
Saul's  surviving  son,  Ishbosheth,  was  proclaimed  J  Samuel, 
king  and  supported  by  the  remaining  tribes,  and  2  Samuel, 
"there  was  long  war,"  says  the  chronicle  in  2  I_v 
Samuel,   "between  the  house  of  Saul   and   the 
house   of  David."     After  seven   years   and   six 
months  of  this  civil  war,  Ishbosheth  was  mur-  David, 
dered  by  captains  of  his  own  bands,  and  David  auistaei. 
was  anointed  king  of  all  Israel.    His  accession  is  Jooo_960(?) 
dated  by  some  reckonings  a  little  before  and  by 
some  a  little  after  1000  B.  C.    He  is  stated  to  have 
been  thirty  years  old  when  his  reign  over  Judah 
began,  and  he  reigned  in  all  forty  years. 

David's  first  action  as  the  national  sovereign 
was  the  important  capture  from  the  Amorite 
Jebusites  of  their  fortress  on  Mount  Zion,  which 
he  made  his  seat  of  government  and  called  "the 
city  of  David,"  but  which  has  borne  the  name  of 
Jerusalem  to  this  day.  The  united  nation  re- 
sumed war  with  the  Philistines,  and  its  armies,  5°jerusa- 
led  by  Joab,  the  able  general  of  King  David,  went  lem 
from  victory  to  victory,  until  those  old  enemies 
were  driven  back  to  their  original  foothold  on  the 
southwestern  coast,  beyond  which  they  passed 
no  more.    Then  the  lust  of  conquest  was  aroused,  2  SamuU 

L  t  V-Vlll 

and  all  the  neighbors  of  Israel  were  assailed  in 
turn.  First  the  Moabites  were  smitten  and  two 
thirds  of  them  were  put  to  death.  Next,  the 
kings  of  Damascus  and  Zobah,  and  other  Ara- 


86 


From  Abraham  to  David 


2  Samuel, 
x-xii 


2  Samuel, 
xii,  3i 


msean  princes  of  Syria,  even  to  the  Euphrates, 
were  overcome  and  "became  David's  servants 
and  brought  gifts."  This  gave  him  one  of  the 
greatest  of  the  prizes  of  ancient  warfare  in  the 
east,  by  making  him  master  of  the  principal  cara- 
van routes  of  western  Asiatic  trade.  By  extend- 
ing his  power  to  Damascus,  where  they  centered, 
he  not  only  laid  his  hand  on  a  source  of  vast 
wealth,  but  he  raised  himself  to  a  high  rank  of 
importance  among  his  neighbors  of  Egypt,  Phoe- 
nicia, Assyria  and  Babylonia,  and  his  fame  went, 
doubtless,  much  farther  abroad. 

The  subjugation  of  the  Syrian  cities  was  fol- 
lowed by  a  more  complete  conquest  of  Edom, 
which  was  annexed  to  David's  kingdom,  after 
Joab  is  said  to  have  "cut  off  every  male."  This 
added  still  more  to  the  Israelite  monarch's  com- 
mand of  the  means  of  wealth,  and  to  the  impor- 
tance of  his  relations  with  the  great  merchant 
race  of  Phoenicia,  by  giving  him  possession  of  the 
ports  on  the  Gulf  of  Akaba,  at  the  head  of  the 
Red  Sea.  Finally  the  Ammonites,  who  foolishly 
provoked  his  anger,  felt  the  weight  of  his  merci- 
less arm.  Help  came  to  them  from  Syria,  but 
could  not  save  them  from  a  crushing  defeat,  and 
when  their  royal  city  was  taken,  by  King  David 
in  person,  "he  brought  forth  the  people  that  were 
therein,  and  put  them  under  saws,  and  under 
harrows  of  iron,  and  under  axes  of  iron,  and  made 
them  pass  through  the  brick-kiln;  and  thus  did 
he  unto  all  the  cities  of  the  children  of  Amnion." 
Among  the  conquerors  of  antiquity  there  seem  to 


David's  Conquests  87 

have  been  few  whose  temper  in  war  was  more 
cruel  than  that  of  David,  "the  sweet  singer  of 
Israel." 

He  had  now  become  a  great  king,  rich  and 
powerful,  admired  and  feared;  ruling  a  con- 
siderable empire;  courted  by  neighboring  sover- 
eigns; surrounded  with  magnificent  state.  He 
declined  in  character  as  his  fortunes  rose,  sinking 
into  the  voluptuous  life  of  the  harem,  which  has 
been  fatal  to  most  princes  of  the  east.  His  people 
were  displeased  with  the  change  in  both  the 
monarchy  and  the  king,  and  their  loyalty  cooled. 
Intrigues,  beginning  in  the  corrupted  royal  Absalom 
household,  spread  disaffection  abroad,  and  set  on 
foot  a  rebellion,  led  by  Absalom,  the  king's 
favorite  son.  It  made  such  headway  at  first  that 
David  fled  from  his  capital  and  took  refuge  on  the  Samuei 
eastern  side  of  the  Jordan;  but  the  veterans  of  xin-xviii 
his  soldiery  and  his  faithful  general,  Joab,  stood 
by  him,  and  the  undisciplined  forces  of  Absalom 
were  beaten  in  a  desperate  fight.  Absalom,  in 
flight  from  the  battlefield,  was  slain  by  the  stern 
Joab,  to  the  great  sorrow  of  the  king.  This 
crushed  the  revolt;  and  when  it  was  followed  by 
an  outbreak  of  jealous  animosity  towards  "the 
men  of  Judah"  in  the  other  tribes,  which  con- 
sidered themselves  to  be  distinctively  "the  men 
of  Israel,"  that,  too,  was  checked  by  Joab's 
strong  hand.  The  remainder  of  the  reign  was 
undisturbed  outwardly;  but,  as  David  grew  old 
and  feeble,  the  question  of  succession  to  the 
throne  gave  rise  to  factions  in  the  harem  and  the 


88  From  Abraham  to  David 

army  which  troubled  his  peace  and  boded  ill  for 
the  kingdom  after  his  death.  It  was  a  question 
not  settled  by  custom  or  law.  The  claims  of  the 
king's  elder  son,  Adonijah,  would  seem  to  have 
been  better  founded  than  any  other,  and  they 
were  supported  by  Joab,  by  one  of  the  two  high 

Solomon  priests,  and  by  all  excepting  one  of  the  other  sons 
of  the  king.  The  single  exception  was  Solomon, 
the  youngest,  whose  mother,  Bathsheba,  in- 
trigued with  success  to  place  him  on  the  throne. 
David  was  persuaded  to  pronounce  in  Solomon's 
favor  and  to  cause  him  to  be  anointed,  solemnly 

/  Kings,  i,ii  an^  publicly,  by  one  of  the  high  priests.  Nathan, 
the  prophet,  headed  a  party  in  his  support,  and 
the  strongest  men  of  Joab's  command  were  won 
away  from  the  latter  to  Solomon's  side.  There- 
fore, when  David  died  (about  960  B.  C),  his 
eldest  son,  Adonijah,  and  his  lifelong  champion, 
Joab,  perished  in  a  conflict  which  gave  the 
crown  of  Israel  to  his  youngest  son. 

The  Phoenicians 

Of  the  Canaanites  who  possessed  the  "prom- 
ised land"  of  Israel  when  Joshua  led  the  tribes  to 
its  conquest,  one  part,  as  said  before,  was  settled 
in  several  cities  on  its  northern  coast,  and  became 
famous  in  later  history  as  the  Phoenicians,  who 
outdid  all  other  people  of  their  time  in  bold 
navigation  and  trade  on  the  Mediterranean  Sea. 
It  is  certain  that  they  had  been  well  established 

Sidon  and  o*j  i   nn  i  1      i  i 

Tyre  at  bidon  and  lyre,  and  probably  in  one  or  two 

others  of  their   seaport   towns,   some   centuries 


The  Phoenicians  and  Their  Trade  89 

before  the  Hebrew  host  invaded  the  land.  The 
latter  appear  to  have  respected  their  strength, 
and  the  Phoenicians,  on  their  side,  took  no  part  in 
the  defense  of  their  inland  brethren,  so  long  as 
their  own  fringe  of  territory  on  the  seashore  was 
undisturbed.  They  cared,  seemingly,  for  nothing 
but  commercial  opportunities,  and  showed  no 
kind  of  political  ambition  throughout  their  career. 
They  were  subject  to  Egypt  while  the  Asiatic 
dominion  of  the  pharaohs  endured,  and  they  were 
easily  subjected  to  other  aggressive  powers  in 
after  days;  but  in  the  time  when  the  Israelites 
were  planting  themselves  in  Canaan,  and  the 
monarchy  of  David  was  rising,  the  Phoenicians 
were  enjoying  an  independent  political  life.  Their 
cities  were  in  no  union,  however,  but  each  had 
its  own  suffetes  (judges)  or  its  own  king.  King- 
ship arose  in  Tyre,  it  is  believed,  about  the  time 
that  Israel  acquired  a  king. 

At  least  as  early  as  the  fourteenth  or  fifteenth 
century  B.  C,  and  probably  earlier,  the  Phceni-  B.C. 
cians  were  active  in  a  sea-carrying  trade.  They  centurfes 
exchanged  commodities  with  the  Aramaean  and 
Arabian  land-carriers,  who  handled  the  products 
of  Babylonia,  Mesopotamia,  and  the  farther  east, 
together  with  imports  by  the  Persian  Gulf  and  the 
Red  Sea,  which  came  even  from  India  and  the 
east  African  coast  at  a  very  remote  time.  The 
traffic  of  the  Phoenician  merchants  of  Sidon,  Phreni.dan 
Tyre,  Aradus,  and  their  neighbors,  was  principal- 
ly, no  doubt,  in  its  early  stages,  with  Egypt,  with 
the  island  of  Cyprus,  and  with  the  Libyan  peoples 


commerce 


90  From  Abraham  to  David 

on  the  north  African  coast,  which  they  skirted 
closely  in  their  voyages,  not  venturing  much  into 
the  open  sea.  According  to  Greek  and  Roman 
writers,  they  planted  colonies  or  trading  settle- 
ments at  Hippo  and  Ityke  (Utica),  opposite  to  the 
island  of  Sicily,  in  the  twelfth  century  B.  C. 
Phoenician  Their  greater  colony  in  that  region,  at  Carthage, 
colonies       was  not  founclecl  until  the  ninth  century  B.  C, 

and  not  much  later,  if  at  all,  they  had  ports  and 
settlements  of  their  own  in  Sicily  and  Sardinia; 
they  had  even  passed  the  straits  of  Gibraltar  into 
the  Atlantic  ocean  and  founded  Gades  (modern 
Cadiz)  on  the  southwestern  coast  of  Spain. 

Reasons  have  been  found  for  believing  that  the 
early  traffic  of  the  Phoenicians  with  the  Greek 
lands,  in  and  around  the  ^Egean,  was  through 
their  meeting  with  Cretan  and  other  traders  from 
that  region  in  Cyprus,  where  interchanges  were 
made.  Former  beliefs  as  to  Phoenician  influence 
on  Greek  culture  in  its  infancy,  and,  generally,  as 
to  the  importance  of  the  part  played  by  the 
Phoenicians  in  the  development  of  civilization 
throughout  the  Mediterranean  world,  have  been 
modified  by  the  archaeological  discoveries  of  late 
years.  More  independence  than  historians  had 
„,     .  .       suspected  heretofore,  in  the  rise  of  different  com- 

rhcenicians  r  #  ' 

not  invent-  munities  on  the  great  inland  sea  from  barbaric 
alphabet  states  of  life,  is  shown  by  increasing  proofs.  It  is 
now  doubted,  and  more  than  doubted,  that  the 
Phoenicians  were  the  inventors,  as  long  supposed, 
of  the  alphabetical  system  from  which  the  alpha- 
bets of  so  many  ancient  and  modern  languages 


The  Greeks  91 

were  derived.  As  active  agents  of  communica- 
tion between  different  peoples  of  advancing  cul- 
ture on  the  Mediterranean  they  contributed 
greatly,  no  doubt,  to  the  progress  of  civilization 
during  some  centuries  of  time;  but  they  are 
believed  now  to  have  originated  less,  and  to  have 
been  teachers  of  less,  than  historians  had  credited 
to  their  account. 

The  Greek  Lands 

As  the  Phoenicians  lose  rank  among  the  builders 
of  the  civilization  of  the  ancient  Mediterranean 
world,  the  early  inhabitants  of  the  shores  and 
islands  of  the  yEgean  Sea,  whether  Pelasgians  or 
Hellenes,  are  gaining.  Until  the  excavations  of  Schiie- 
Dr.  Schliemann  on  the  site  of  ancient  Troy,  in 
1873,  and  at  Mycenae,  in  1876,  began  to  disclose 
remains  of  the  Greek  world,  as  it  was  in  the  age  to 
which  the  Homeric  poems  relate,  those  poems  had 
seemed  to  be  a  doubtful  source  of  nearly  all  the 
knowledge  that  could  be  gleaned  of  life  in  Hellas 
at  an  earlier  stage  of  culture  than  Herodotus  and 
Thucydides  depict. 

The  epic  of  the  siege  of  Troy  was  composed  at 
some  uncertain  time  in  the  ninth,  tenth  or 
eleventh  century  before  Christ.  Its  subject  is  an 
episode  supposed  to  have  been  taken  by  the  poet 
or  poets  from  the  traditions  of  a  time  long  pre- 
ceding their  own.  That  the  actors  and  the 
actions  in  it  were  really  historical,  and  that  its 
wonderful  pictures  of  life  were  not  paintings  from 
the  poet's  own  day,  with  high  colorings  of  im- 


mann  s  ex- 
cavations 


92 


Homer  and 
the  Iliad 


Memorials 
of  the 
Homeric 
heroes 


From  Abraham  to  David 

agination,  seemed  reasonably  open  to  great 
doubt.  But  the  spade-work  of  archaeology,  car- 
ried on  busily  in  Hellenic  lands  since  Schliemann's 
discoveries  were  made,  has  given  surprising  veri- 
fications of  Homer,  and  thrown  undreamed-of 
light  on  periods  far  behind  the  Homeric  age.  The 
personal  reality  of  Agamemnon  still  depends  on 
Homer's  word;  but  we  know  now  that  his  king- 
dom of  Mycenae  belongs  to  history;  that  it  was  a 
power  in  its  day  and  in  its  region  of  the  world; 
that  it  represents  a  great  influence  in  the  early 
civilization  of  mankind;  and  it  helps  to  explain  to 
us  the  marvelous  equipment  of  culture  with 
which  the  Greeks  seemed  to  leap  into  history,  as 
their  story  was  told  heretofore. 

We  are  still  without  records  or  messages  from 
the  Homeric  heroes;  but,  as  Dr.  Tsountas,  one  of 
the  successors  in  Dr.  Schliemann's  work,  has 
written:  "We  have  before  our  eyes  the  impreg- 
nable strongholds  which  sheltered  these  ancient 
people,  as  at  Tiryns  and  Mycenae,  or  which  long 
withstood  their  siege,  as  at  Troy.  We  have  the 
palaces  of  their  kings,  in  ruins,  to  be  sure,  but 
still  with  their  foundations  as  well  as  their  hearths 
and  altars  intact,  and  enough  of  their  decorations 
to  enable  us  to  build  them  up  again  and  adorn 
them  anew.  .  .  .  We  have  recovered  their 
actual  swords  and  scepters;  the  bracelets  they 
wore  and  the  signets  they  used;  the  goblets  and 
tankards  that  went  round  the  festal  company  as 
they  quaffed  the  honey-hearted  wine  or  made 
libation  to  their  gods.     And,  where  the  actual 


Homer 

From  the  painting  by  Francois  Pascal  Gerard  (1770-1837) 


New  Discoveries  in  Greek  History  93 

objects  fail,  their  artists  come  in  to  fill  the  gap: 
before  our  eyes  they  bring  the  princes  in  their 
chariots  chasing  the  deer  or  proceeding  to  war; 
lion  and  bull  hunts;  scenes  of  siege  and  battle,  of 
worship  and  sacrifice,  of  so  many  moments  of 
their  existence,  indeed,  that  an  orderly  series  of  Tsountas 

*  and 

them   would    go   far    to    make    a    compendious  Manatt, 
chronicle    of    the    time.      Thus    we    follow    the  „LM„y" 
Mycenaean  through  life,  nor  at  death  does  the  4w  347 
light  go  out.     .     .     .     Kindly  earth  has  sheltered 
the  dwellings  of  the  dead." 

As  the  result  of  all  that  has  come  to  light, 
through  scholarly  labors  of  excavation  at  many 
points,  throughout  Greece  and  on  the  islands  and 
eastern  coasts  of  the  ^Egean,  the  rise  of  Greek  art 
and  of  Greek  culture  in  general  can  now  be  traced 
with  increasing  certainty  and  clearness  from  a 
time  long  anterior  to  the  age  of  the  Mycenaean 
kings,  and  probably  more  than  2000  years  before 
Christ.  Late  discoveries  show  that  what  a  recent 
writer  on  the  subject  has  described  as  "the  evolu- 
tion from  the  more  primitive  to  the  fully  devel- 
oped form  of  prehistoric  Greek  culture"  was 
centralized  earliest  in  the  island  of  Crete.  Greek 
legend  and  tradition  were  full  of  intimations  of  Crete 
the  fact;  but  historians  could  find  nothing 
tangible  in  what  seemed  to  be  a  medley  of  incom- 
prehensible myths.  That  Minos,  the  powerful 
Cretan  king,  extorted  a  yearly  tribute  of  Athenian 
youths  and  maidens,  to  be  devoured  by  a  strange 
monster  called  the  Minotaur,  whom  he  confined 
in  a  wonderful  labyrinth;  that  Theseus,  the  hero, 


94 


From  Abraham  to  David 


M 


slew  the  Minotaur  and  escaped  from  the  labyrinth 

by  help  of  the  clue  of  Ariadne, — what  an  empty 

fable  it  all  seemed  to  be!    But  the  ruins  of  a  great 

Finding  the  palace  at  Knossos,  in  Crete,  having  an  elaborate 

labyrinth        r  ,   •    ,  i  j 

of  King  underground  maze,  which  answers  to  the  de- 
scription of  the  labyrinth  of  King  Minos,  has 
now  been  explored.  Its  remains  prove  reality,  at 
least,  in  the  existence  of  a  power  which  terrorized 
early  Greece,  and  whose  princes  were  able  to 
execute  works  so  remarkable  in  their  day  as  to 
give  rise  to  fabulous  stories  in  neighboring  lands. 
The  findings  in  Knossos,  and  elsewhere  in 
Crete,  show  a  state  of  civilization  earlier  than 
that  which  centered  at  Mycenae,  but  very  vigor- 
ous and  already  well  advanced.  It  was  the 
civilization  of  a  race  of  sea-kings — a  thalas- 
socracy,  so  called, — and  there  seems  to  be  little 
doubt  that  it  arose  among  a  people  who  were  not 
of  the  Hellenic  or  Greek  stock.  They  were  active, 
no  doubt,  in  both  piracy  and  trade.  Their  inter- 
change of  products  with  Egypt  is  especially 
evident,  and  Egyptian  influence  appears  in  their 
arts,  but  not  to  the  suppression  of  an  independent 
and  original  character  in  all  that  they  did. 

The  most  surprising  and  important  discovery 
made  at  Knossos  is  the  fact  that  these  early 
Cretans  were  in  possession  of  the  art  of  writing, 
and  practiced  it  in  two  systems,  described  as  fol- 
lows by  Sir  Arthur  J.  Evans,  the  director  of  the 
explorations:  "I  came  upon  a  series  of  deposits 
of  clay  tablets,  representing  the  royal  archives, 
the  inscriptions  on  which  belong  to  two  distinct 


Cretan 

sea-kings 


Wonderful  Findings  in  Crete  95 

systems  of  writing — one  hieroglyphic  and  quasi- 
pictorial;  the  other  for  the  most  part  linear  and 
much  more  highly  developed.  Of  these  the 
hieroglyphic  class  especially  presents  a  series  of 
forms  answering  to  what,  according  to  the  names 
of  the  Phoenician  letters,  we  must  suppose  to 
have  been  the  original  pictorial  designs  from 
which  those,  too,  were  derived."  "The  great 
bulk  of  the  tablets  belonged  to  the  linear  class,    . 

1  .  Apparent 

exhibiting    an    elegant    and    much    more    highly  originals  of 
developed  form  of  script,  with  letters  of  an  up-  ^p^be'i-"1 
right    and    singularly    European    aspect.      The 
inscriptions,  over  1000  of  which  were  collected, 
were  originally  contained  in  coffers  of  clay,  wood  f™£8' m 
and  gypsum,  which  had  been  in  turn  secured  by  Times, 
clay  seals,  impressed  with  finely  engraved  signets  3^0-01.31, 
and  counter-marked  and  countersigned  by  con-  I9°° 
trolling  officials  in  the  same  script,  while  the  clay 
was  still  wet.     .     .     .     The  problems  attaching 
to  the  decipherment  of  these  clay  records  are  of 
enthralling  interest,  and  we  have  here  locked  up 
for  us  materials  which  may  some  day  enlarge  the 
bounds  of  history." 

Of  the  general  significance  of  the  archaeological 
discoveries  made  so  recently  in  Crete,  Mr.  D.  G. 
Hogarth,  the  Director  of  the  British  School  at 
Athens,  has  written:  "Far  into  the  third  mil- 
lennium B.  C,  at  the  very  least,  and  more  prob- 
ably much  earlier  still,  there  was  a  civilization  in  Hogarth, 
the  JEgean  and  on  the  Greek  mainland  which,  a„"jX;L- 
while  it  contracted  many  debts  to  the  east  and  to  ol°sy^  p*- 

.  2  :  238 

Egypt,  was  able  to  assimilate  all  that  it  borrowed, 


96  From  Abraham  to  David 

and  to  reissue  it  in  an  individual  form,  expressed 
in  products  which  are  not  of  the  same  character 
with  those  of  any  eastern  civilization  that  we 
know." 

Cretan  ascendancy  in  the  ^Egean  gave  way  to 
that  of  the  Mycenaean  kings,  probably  at  some 
date  near  the  middle  of  the  second  millennium 
B.  C.     The  flourishing  period  of  what  is  being 
called  "the  Mycenaean  Age"  of  culture  is  believed 
on  good  evidence  to  have  extended  from  about 
TheMyce-    ^e  sixteenth  century  B.  C.  to  about  the  twelfth. 
naeanAge.  1  Egypt    supplies    this    evidence    in    two    modes, 
"nhife^c?)  resultmg  firstly  from  the  fact  that  the  dating  of 
its  dynasties  is  approximately  fixed,  and  secondly 
from  the  further  fact  that  certain  characteristic 
features  of  Egyptian  art,  especially  in  the  forms 
and   decoration  of  pottery,   are  identified  with 
particular  periods  of  time.     Specimens  of  Egyp- 
tian  pottery   and  other  articles  of  the   known 
workmanship   of   that   country,   found   in   My- 
cenaean   ruins    and    tombs,    and    corresponding 
specimens  of  Mycenaean  art  found  in  Egyptian 
tombs  of  a  known  period,  all  point  to  the  Eight- 
Egypt  and    eenth,  Nineteenth  and  Twentieth  dynasties  of  the 
Greece        pharaohs  as  being  contemporary  with  the  flour- 
ishing period  of  the  Mycenaean  realm;    and  this 
gives  to  the  latter  about  the  range  of  time  stated 
above. 

Within  this  "Mycenaean  Age"  the  develop- 
ment of  Greek  culture  on  its  artistic  side  went 
even  beyond  that  of  Egypt  or  Babylonia,  not  in 
technical  skill,  but  in  freedom  of  spirit  and  in  fine 


The  Mycenaean  Age  97 

apprehension  of  the  beauty  of  the  natural  world. 
Otherwise  it  does  not  seem  to  have  made  an 
equal  advance.  Its  cyclopean  architecture  was 
ruder  than  that  of  Egypt;  much  fewer  refine-  £ar] 
ments  of  life  appear;  and,  strangely,  there  are  no  Greek  Art 
inscriptions  found, — no  tokens,  in  fact,  of  any 
knowledge  or  use  of  writing  in  any  form,  except  a 
few  signs  or  characters  on  vessels  of  pottery, 
resembling  pottery-marks  which  Mr.  Petrie 
found  in  prehistoric  Egyptian  relics  of  a  far  more 
ancient  time.  In  view  of  the  many  inscribed 
tablets  found  in  Crete  this  can  hardly  be  ex- 
plained. 

In  their  traditions  of  "golden  Mycenae"  the 
Greeks  of  a  later  time  recognized  its  princes  and 
dominant  people  as  being  of  their  own  Hellenic 
stock,  belonging  to  what  they  knew  as  the 
Achaean  branch.  From  two  sons  and  two  grand- 
sons of  Hellen,  the  reputed  father  of  their  race, 
they  derived  four  tribal  divisions,  ^Eolian,  Dori-  .,  . 
an,  Ionian  and  Achaean,  of  which  the  last  two,  the 
acknowledging  descent  from  the  same  scion  of  the  e  enes 
house  of  Hellen,  but  not  bearing  his  name,  were 
held  to  be  most  nearly  akin.  By  relationship  of 
language  the  Hellenes  are  identified  with  the 
great  Aryan  family,  and  their  entrance  into  the 
Greek  peninsula  occurred  in  some  connection 
with  the  mysterious  dispersive  movement  of  those 
masterful  people  who  imposed  their  speech  on  so 
many  populations  in  Europe  and  Asia.  The  four 
Hellenic  divisions  seem  to  have  dwelt  together  at 
first  in  Thessaly,  whence  parts  of  the  yEolian, 


98 


The 
Pelasgians 


-rfEolians, 
Ionians, 
Achsans 


The  Dorian 
migration. 
B.  C.  12th 

century  (?) 


From  Abraham  to  David 

Ionian  and  Achaean  tribes  made  the  earliest 
advance  southwards,  subduing  the  older  inhabit- 
ants (the  Pelasgians,  of  disputed  race  and  origin, 
for  the  most  part),  and  settling  themselves  in  dif- 
ferent sections  of  the  country  known  finally  as 
Greece.  The  iEolians  were  much  scattered  in  the 
states  they  founded;  the  Ionians  occupied 
Attica  and  parts  of  the  Peloponnesus;  the 
Achaeans,  too,  passed  into  the  Peloponnesus,  and 
established  their  domination  in  the  district  of 
Argos,  founding  the  kingdom  and  attaining  the 
civilization  to  which  Mycenae  has  given  its  name. 
The  Achaean  throne  at  Mycenae  and  the  state  of 
culture  in  Greece  which  it  illustrated  are  supposed 
to  have  been  overwhelmed,  at  some  time  near  the 
end  of  the  twelfth  century  B.  C.  or  early  in  the 
eleventh,  very  much  as  the  Roman  empire,  in 
later  times,  was  buried  under  an  avalanche  of 
barbarism  from  the  north.  The  barbaric  in- 
vaders in  this  case  were  the  Dorian  tribes  which 
had  stayed  in  Thessaly  when  their  brethren 
moved  south,  and  which  had  not  advanced  in 
culture  as  the  latter  had  done.  About  the  thir- 
teenth and  twelfth  centuries  B.  C.  there  seems 
to  have  been  a  long  period  of  widespread  and 
great  disturbance  among  the  peoples  between  the 
Mediterranean  and  the  Euxine  or  Black  Sea, 
probably  produced  by  some  eruption  from  the 
farther  north.  The  invasions  of  Syria,  Canaan, 
and  Egypt,  from  the  ^Egean  lands  and  elsewhere, 
were  probably  one  of  its  results;  the  migration  of 
the  Dorians  into  the  Peloponnesus  was  another. 


The  Hellenic  Tribes 


99 


The  latter,  driven  from  Thessaly  by  people  who 
then  gave  their  name  to  that  district,   moved  6S-69) 
southward  and  occupied  most  of  the  region  below 
the  isthmus,  founding  several  Dorian  states,  of 
which  Sparta,  or  Lacedaemon,  Argos,  and  Corinth,  s  arta 
were  the  chief.     According  to  Greek  tradition,  Argos, 
Attica  became  overcrowded  by  Ionian  refugees  Attica 
from  this  Dorian  invasion,  and  the  result  was  an 
emigration  thence  to  neighboring  islands  and  to 
the  opposite  Asiatic  coast,  which  subsequently 
gave  the  latter  its  Ionian  name. 

The  Dorians,  at  the  time  of  their  destructive 
march  through  Greece  and  conquest  of  the 
Peloponnesus,  appear  to  have  been  so  rude  in 
culture,  and  so  slow  in  receiving  and  assimilating 
what  they  found  in  their  new  homes,  that  they 
brought  upon  the  country  a  period  of  decadence  age»  in 
in  civilization,  somewhat  like  that  of  the  dark  Greece 
ages  which  followed  the  fall  of  Rome,  but  neither 
so  serious  nor  so  long.  That  Athens  and  Attica, 
and  the  coast  and  island  colonies  peopled  there- 
from, were  saved  from  the  barbarizing  invasion, 
seems  to  be  one  important  reason  why  the  new — 
the  classic — civilization,  which  rose  in  Greece 
some  four  centuries  later,  found  its  leadership  and 
its  chief  seats  in  the  Ionian  states.  But  there 
must  have  been  something  of  intellectual  superi- 
ority, moreover,  in  the  Ionian  stock. 

Elsewhere  in  Europe 

Of  the  inhabitants  of  other  parts  of  Europe, — ■ 
of   their   circumstances    and   condition, — of   the 


peninsula 


ioo  From  Abraham  to  David 

movements,  conquests  and  displacements  of  each 
other  that  went  on  among  them,  within  the  period 
now  under  review, — there  is  no  knowledge  yet 
obtained  that  can  possibly  be  defined  in  time  or 
event.  It  is  probable  that  the  Italian  peninsula 
was  occupied  by  peoples  akin  to  those  called 
Pelasgians  in  Greece,  and  probable  that  they  had 
made  a  considerable  advance  in  arts  and  modes 
of  life,  before  the  beginning  of  the  last  millennium 
The  Italian  B.  C.  It  is  probable  that  the  Aryan  migrations, 
whatever  their  starting  point,  their  course  and 
their  effect  on  older  populations  may  have  been, 
had  already  brought  into  Italy  the  invaders  who 
imposed  the  Latin  and  cognate  languages  on  the 
land.  It  is  probable  that  other  branches  of  the 
same  movement  had  reached  those  parts  of 
Europe  on  which  the  stamp  of  the  languages 
called  Celtic  and  Germanic  was  left;  but  whether 
the  prior  population  was  extinguished,  or  dis- 
placed, or  merely  subjugated  and  absorbed  by  the 
movement,  it  is  impossible  to  know.  It  is  prob- 
able that  the  lake-dwellers  of  Switzerland  and 
northern  Italy  had  begun  the  building  of  their 
villages  on  piles,  in  the  shallower  waters  of  the 
lakes,  far  back  in  this  early  period,  and  that 
before  the  period  ended  their  first  stone  imple- 
ments and  weapons  were  beginning  to  be  dis- 
placed by  those  of  copper,  or,  possibly,  of  copper 
hardened  into  bronze.  It  is  probable,  too,  that 
Stonehenge,  and  other  rude  stone  structures  of 
like  kind,  in  Britain,  France  and  elsewhere,  had 
already  been  built,  by  people  in  the  later  stage  of 


The  lake 
dwellers 


Stonehenge 


Western  Europe  in  This  Period  ioi 

neolithic  culture,  who  used  no  metals,  and  yet 
were  able  to  quarry,  transport  and  handle  huge 
masses  of  rock.  Excavations  at  Stonehenge  in 
September,  1901,  made  in  preparation  for  work 
to  prevent  further  falling  of  the  upright  mono- 
liths, unearthed  a  great  number  of  stone  tools, 
which  must  have  been  the  implements  of  the 
original  builders;  but  of  metal  there  was  no  sign. 
These  are  reasonable  conjectures  as  to  happen- 
ings in  Europe  prior  to  a  thousand  years  before 
Christ,  but  they  are  no  more. 

In  Asia  Minor 

Obscurely  known  as  yet,  there  were  several 
nations  in  Asia  Minor  which  had  importance  in 
these  early  times,  and  concerning  which  there  is 
undoubtedly  much  for  archaeologists  to  learn  by 
the  inquisitive  spade,  in  coming  years.  The 
Lydians,  whom  some  would  connect  with  the  Lydians 
Semites  of  Mesopotamia,  and  others  with  the 
mysterious  Hittites,  had  founded  a  monarchy 
which  ran  a  long  career,  and  which  rose  in  the  end 
to  quite  formidable  power.  The  Phrygians  were  Phrygians 
of  Aryan  speech,  and  have  been  looked  upon  as  a 
link  between  the  ancient  Persians  and  the  Greeks. 
The  Trojans  belonged  to  the  Phrygian  race,  and  . 
their  civilization  in  the  eleventh  or  twelfth  cen- 
tury B.  C.  is  illustrated  by  the  remains  which  Dr. 
Dorpfield  has  uncovered  on  the  site  of  ancient 
Troy.  If  the  Phrygians  may  be  judged  from  the 
opinion  of  the  Greeks,  they  were  a  sensuous  and 
effeminate  race,  having  few  manly  traits;    and 


102  From  Abraham  to  David 

yet  they  do  not  show  badly  in  Homer's  tale  of 
Troy. 
Armenia  Armenia,  moreover,  was  inhabited  by  people 

who  had  the  same  Aryan  relationship  of  speech; 
but  their  early  history  connects  itself  mostly  with 
that  of  the  Semites  of  the  great  valley  which 
slopes  southward  from  their  hills. 

The  Asiatic  Aryans 

Between  the  borders  of  Armenia  and  Babylonia 
on  one  side  and  the  frontiers  of  ancient  China  on 
the  other,  the  Asiatic  world  is  wrapt  in  deep  dark- 
ness through  all  this  long  period.  Something 
may  be  inferred  as  to  probable  conditions  from 
what  appeared  later;  but  really  nothing  is  known. 
There  can  be  hardly  a  doubt  that  the  people  who 
planted  Aryan  roots  of  speech  on  the  table-land 
of  Iran  and  in  the  valley  of  the  Indus,  were 
already  in  those  habitats  when  Tiglathpileser 
invaded  Armenia,  or  when  David  mounted  the 
Judean  throne,  and  that  Medes  and  Persians 
were  growing  slowly  to  the  strength  which  by  and 
by  would  break  the  old  Semitic  powers;  but  on 
no  such  points  can  there  be  any  certainty  of  time. 
Some  conjectures  have  put  the  arrival  of  the 
Aryas  in  the  "land  of  five  rivers"  (the  Punjab)  at 
India  about  2000  B.  C,  others  at  1500  B.  C;  the  room 

for  difference  of  opinion  is  very  wide.  Down  to  a 
time  much  later  than  the  latest  of  these  dates, 
neither  the  Aryas  of  Iran  nor  those  of  India 
recorded  anything  that  has  been  preserved,  in  any 
form  of  writing,  so  far  as  yet  known;   but  some 


Medes  and 
Persians 


The  Aryas  of  Iran  and  India  103 

glimpses  of  their  early  life  and  some  reasonable 
guesses  at  their  story  are  drawn  from  language- 
marks,  traditions  and  myths,  found  embedded  in 
a  rich  literature,  which  seems  to  have  been  pre- 
served for  many  centuries  by  oral  transmission 
before  the  art  of  writing  was  attained. 

There  are  two  distinct  bodies  of  that  literature, 
derived  from  the  Asiatic  Aryans  of  antiquity,  one 
coming  from  the  dwellers  in  Iran,  the  other  from 
the  branch  which  crossed  the  mountains  into  the 
valley  of  the  Indus  and  spread  thence  over  most 
of  the  northern  part  of  the  peninsula  called  India 
or  Hindustan.  In  its  surviving  state,  the 
antiquity  of  the  oldest  Hindu  literature  is  greater 
than  that  of  Iran.  It  exists,  in  an  early  form  of 
the  Sanscrit  language,  as  a  collection  (the  Rig-  TheVedic 
veda,  or  Hymn-veda)  of  hymns  and  prayers  to 
the  gods,  "veda"  signifying  knowledge,  especially 
the  knowledge  of  things  divine.  Compared  with 
the  religion  (Brahmanism)  that  grew  from  it  at  a 
later  day,  it  represents  a  primitive  stage  in  the 
development  of  religious  ideas.  The  gods 
addressed  in  the  Vedic  hymns  stand  simply  for 
the  forces  and  phenomena  of  the  natural  world. 
In  all,  their  divinities — devas,  meaning  literally 
"the  shining  ones," — numbered  about  thirty- 
three;  but  Indra,  who  represented  in  their 
thoughts  the  periodical  rains,  or  the  giver  of  those  Monicr- 
rains,  on  which,  as  an  agricultural  people,  they  Williams 

'  °  «ii  1    Hinduism* 

were  dependent,  came  to  be  praised  and  venerated  ch.  ii 
the  most. 

The    ancient    Iranian    sacred    literature,    pre- 


The  Avesta 


104  From  Abraham  to  David 

served  in  books  that  bear  the  name  of  the  Avesta, 
or  Zendavesta  (that  is,  the  Avesta,  or  sacred  text, 
and  its  zend,  or  interpretation,  in  a  more  modern 
tongue),  is  avowedly  the  product  of  a  reform  of 
the  primitive  religion  of  the  Aryas,  brought  about 
by  a  great  teacher,  Zarathustra,  or  Zoroaster, 
who  is  believed  to  have  lived  not  earlier  than  the 
seventh  or  sixth  century  before  Christ.  No 
doubt  much  of  the  poetry  and  teaching  of  an 
older  time  is  incorporated  with  the  Zoroastrian 
hymns,  liturgies  and  laws;  but  they  seem  to  cast 
no  such  light  on  former  ages  as  the  Rig-veda  has 
thrown. 

China 

In  the  opinion  of  Professor  Robert  K.  Douglas, 
the  purely  fabulous  chapters  of  Chinese  history 
come  to  a  close  with  the  advent  to  power  of  the 
Emperor  Yao,  with  whose  reign  Confucius  began 
the  Book  of  History  ascribed  to  him.  This  prob- 
ably represents  the  more  conservative  Chinese 
belief.  Yao  was  succeeded  by  a  sovereign  named 
Shun,  and  the  latter  by  the  "Great  Yu,"  who  was 
raised  to  the  throne  because  of  the  remarkable 
ability  and  energy  he  had  shown  in  dealing  with  a 
terrific  flood.  These  three  emperors  are  the 
models  of  princely  virtue  in  Chinese  esteem.  Yu 
founded  the  Hsia  Dynasty  which  occupied  the 
throne  for  nearly  three  hundred  years.  It  was 
succeeded  by  the  Shang  or  Yin  Dynasty,  and 
that,  in  turn,  after  some  six  centuries,  by  the 


Early  Chinese  Dynasties  105 

Dynasty  of  Chow,  whose  founder,  Woo  Wang, 
left  a  memory  which  is  reverenced  like  that  of 
Yao,  Shun  and  Yu. 


CHAPTER  III 

FROM  THE  DEATH  OF  DAVID  TO  THE 
ADVENT  OF  CYRUS 

(Approximately,  B.  C.  960  to  558) 
The  Period:  Transfer  of  leadership  in  civilization  to  Aryan  racea.  The 
Hebrew  Kingdoms,  and  Assyria  and  Babylonia:  Character  and  reign  of 
Solomon. — Division  of  the  monarchy. — The  kingdoms  of  Israel  and  Judah. — 
Introduction  of  idolatry. — The  prophets  Elijah  and  Elisha. — Assyrian  con- 
quests.— Transplantation  of  conquered  peoples. — Overthrow  of  the  kingdom 
of  Israel. — No  mystery  concerning  the  "lost  ten  tribes."- — Resistance  of 
Jerusalem  to  Sennacherib. — The  prophet  Isaiah. — Destruction  of  Babylon. 
Egypt:  The  Assyrian  conquest. — Independence  recovered. — Exploring 
expedition  round  Africa. — The  first  Suez  canal.  Assyria,  Media,  Chaldean, 
Babylonia  and  the  Kingdom  of  Judah:  Assur-bani-pal  (Sardanapalus). — His 
great  library  at  Nineveh. — Last  years  of  the  Assyrian  empire. — Destruction 
of  Nineveh. — Secrets  of  history  preserved  in  its  ruins. — Nebuchadnezzar. — 
His  destruction  of  Jerusalem. — Babylonian  exile  of  the  Jewish  people. — End 
of  the  kingdom  of  David. — Magnificence  of  the  new  Babylon.  In  the  Lands 
of  the  Greeks:  A  new  era  of  culture  opened  by  the  Greeks. — Evolution  of  the 
first  democracies. — The  Ionian  genius. — The  Homeric  epics. — The  two  great 
literatures  of  antiquity,  Hebrew  and  Greek. — Political  development  of 
Athens.  The  Latin  Region:  Beginnings  of  Rome. — The  unions  that  gave 
birth  to  it. — Origin  of  patricians  and  plebeians.  Phoenicians  and  Car- 
thaginians: The  founding  of  Carthage. — Settlements  in  Spain. — Phoenician 
manufactures.  India:  Development  of  Brahmanism. — Creation  of  caste. 
China:   General  disorder. 

One  of  the  greatest  of  the  revolutions  in  human 
history — perhaps  the  greatest  of  all  in  deep  im- 
centuriesof  port — was  accomplished  in  the  period  that  will 
cendancy8"  ^e  surveyed  in  this  chapter.  It  was  now  that  the 
Semitic  and  Hamitic  races  lost  their  leadership  in 
civilization  and  empire,  and  the  peoples  of  Aryan 
speech  began  to  assume  the  historical  preemin- 
ence that  they  have  held  to  the  present  day. 

The  Hebrew  Kingdoms 

In  the  character  of  King  Solomon,  there  was 
nothing  of  the  military  energy  of  David,  his 
father.    He  relaxed  it  so  entirely  that  a  large  part 

106 


The  last 


Separation  of  the  Hebrew  Kingdoms  107 

of  David's  conquests  was  lost.  Damascus  re- 
gained independence  and  became  a  troublesome 
hostile  state.  Much  of  Edom,  too,  was  torn  from 
Solomon's  kingdom;  but  he  kept  control  of  access 
to  the  Red  Sea.  He  was  careful,  indeed,  to  pro- 
tect and  foster  the  commerce  of  the  country  to  the 
utmost  of  his  power,  as  a  source  of  wealth.  To 
that  end  he  cultivated  friendly  relations  and  close 
alliance  with  the  Phoenicians  of  Tyre  and  with  0f  Solomon 
Egypt,  receiving  from  the  latter  a  princess  to  \^gSy 
become  one  of  his  numerous  wives.  His  policy 
was  one  of  peace,  and  it  might  have  given  happi- 
ness to  his  people  if  his  boundless  extravagance 
had  not  consumed  its  fruits.  His  expenditure  on 
the  great  temple  at  Jerusalem,  which  constituted 
his  chief  monument,  must  have  been  inconsidera- 
ble compared  with  the  cost  of  his  harem  and 
court,  the  luxury  and  magnificence  of  which  were 
the  wonder  of  the  neighboring  world.  In  style 
and  display  he  seems  to  have  been  the  "grand 
monarch"  of  his  day,  and  his  little  realm  suffered 
heavy  oppressions  to  feed  the  selfish  vanity  of  its 
king. 

At  Solomon's  death  an  explosion  of  rebellion 
reopened  the  old  cleft  between  the  tribes  of  Judah 
and  Benjamin,  on  one  side,  and  the  remaining  ten 
tribes  on  the  other.  It  was  never  closed  again. 
Henceforth  there  were  two  Hebrew  kingdoms,  National 

°  disruption 

that  of  Israel  and  that  of  Judah,  Benjamin  being  b.c.926(?) 
joined  with  Judah  in  forming  the  latter,  which 
kept  Jerusalem  for  its  capital  and  adhered  to 
David's  royal  house.    Solomon's  son,  Rehoboam, 


io8 


From  David  to  Cyrus 


j  Kings, 
xi,  26-40, 
xii,  I-20 


The  king- 
doms of 
Judah  and 
Israel 


W.R.Smith 
Prophets  of 
Israel, 
lect.  S 


/  Kings, 
xiv,  25-28 


was  the  first  of  its  kings,  while  Israel  crowned 
Jeroboam,  a  soldier  who  had  fled  to  Egypt  after 
plotting  revolution  in  the  late  reign.  The  south- 
ern kingdom  was  small  and  weak,  and,  although 
it  had  David's  capital,  Solomon's  temple,  and  the 
remembered  splendor  of  the  late  reigns,  to  give  it 
prestige,  it  suffered  most  in  the  conflicts  between 
the  two,  and  dropped  to  a  lower  historical  rank. 
Judah,  as  Professor  Robertson  Smith  remarks, 
"was  not  only  inferior  in  political  power,  but  in 
the  share  it  took  in  the  active  movements  of 
national  life  and  thought.  ...  It  was  the 
northern  nation  that  had  the  task  of  upholding 
the  standard  of  Israel;  its  whole  history  presents 
greater  interest  and  more  heroic  elements;  its 
struggles,  its  calamities,  and  its  glories  were  cast 
in  a  larger  mould." 

The  Judean  kingdom  sustained  a  great  disaster 
in  the  fifth  year  of  Rehoboam's  reign,  when 
Egypt,  after  long  torpidity,  became  suddenly 
aggressive  again,  and  Palestine  was  invaded  and 
ravaged  by  Shishak,  or  Sheshonk,  the  last  of  the 
pharaohs  who  displayed  any  vigor  in  arms.  Even 
Jerusalem  was  taken  by  Shishak  and  much  of 
Solomon's  treasure  carried  away;  but  no  per- 
manent subjugation  of  the  kingdom  occurred. 
Rehoboam  retained  the  throne,  and  his  descend- 
ants, in  long  succession,  afterwards;  which 
stability  of  government  was  a  blessing  not  shared 
by  the  rival  kingdom  in  the  north.  There,  three 
revolutionary  changes  of  dynasty  occurred  within 
forty  years.   The  last  of  these  gave  Israel  a  strong 


The  Kingdom  of  Israel  109 

ruler  in  Omri,  the  general  of  its  army,  who  seems  Revoiu- 
to  have  established  a  firmer  basis  of  government,  ^10nsiin 

Israel. 

and  who  founded  the  city  of  Samaria  to  be  its  /  Kings, 
permanent  capital.  But  even  Omri  could  not  ™j  ^s4' 
make  head  against  the  rising  Aramaean  power 
now  centered  at  Damascus,  which  encroached 
more  and  more  on  the  territory  of  Israel  east  of 
the  Jordan,  taking  advantage  of  the  Hebrew 
divisions,  and  sometimes  going  into  alliance  with 
one  against  the  other  in  their  fratricidal  wars. 

Omri's   son  Ahab   had   the  wisdom   to  make 
peace  with  Judah  and  to  establish  close  relations 
of  friendship  with  Tyre;    but  his   marriage  to 
Jezebel,  the  Tyrian  king's  daughter,  had  unfor- 
tunate   results.      Under   Jezebel's    influence    he 
introduced    the    worship    of    the   Tyrian    Baal, 
building  a  temple  in  Samaria  and  admitting  to 
the  country  a  great  number  of  the  priests  of  the 
idolatrous  cult.    This  unfaithfulness  to  Jehovah 
and  encouragement  to  idolatry  was  nothing  new. 
Of  Solomon  we  are  told  that  "his  wives  turned 
away  his  heart  to  other  gods,"  and  that  he  built  both  king- 
"an  high  place  for  Chemosh,  the  abomination  of  f3^  s 
Moab,"  and  "for  Moloch,  the  abomination  of  the  xi'  ^  *»> 
children  of  Ammon,"  and  "likewise  did  he  for  all  22-24! xvi, 
his  strange  wives,"  of  whom  he  had  seven  hun-  29"33 
dred.    Moreover,  when  the  kingdom  of  Israel  was 
set  up  against  that  of  Judah,  its  first  king,  Jero- 
boam, "made  two  calves  of  gold,"  and  said  to  the 
people,  "behold  thy  gods,  O  Israel,  which  brought 
thee  up  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt;  and  he  set  the 
one  in  Bethel,  and  the  other  he  put  in  Dan;"  and 


no 


From  David  to  Cyrus 


The 

prophets, 
Elijah  and 
Elisha. 
/  Kings, 
xvii-xxi 


2  Kings, 
i-xi 


this  idolatry  was  maintained  under  all  the  suc- 
ceeding kings.  In  Judah,  too,  they  "built  them 
high  places,  and  images,  and  groves,"  and  "they 
did  according  to  all  the  abominations  of  the 
nations."  But  now  there  broke  forth  in  Israel  a 
fearless  voice  in  denunciation  of  the  worship  of 
Baal.  It  was  that  of  the  prophet  Elijah,  who 
seems  to  have  stood  nearly  alone  at  the  beginning 
in  defiant  opposition  to  king  and  queen.  Little  as 
the  sentiment  of  the  nation  supported  them,  Elijah 
and  Elisha,  his  disciple,  were  triumphant  in  the 
end;  the  priests  of  Baal  were  slain  and  the 
idolatrous  worship  suppressed.  This  triumph 
was  not  attained,  however,  until  after  Ahab's 
death. 

Ahab  perished  in  a  battle  with  the  king  of 
Damascus,  against  whom  he  now  had  the  help  of 
Judah,  but  without  avail,  even  though  Damascus 
and  all  the  Syrian  states  were  beginning  to  be 
shaken  by  Assyrian  attacks.  Two  sons  of  Ahab 
reigned  after  him,  in  Israel,  their  mother  Jezebel 
still  living  and  exercising  an  influence  that  was 
evil  in  many  ways.  Then  a  bloody  revolution, 
said  to  have  been  instigated  by  Elisha,  extermin- 
ated the  family  of  Ahab  and  raised  Jehu,  the 
commander  of  the  troops,  to  the  throne.  It  was 
now  that  Baal  was  overthrown  and  Israel  re- 
turned to  the  worship  of  Jehovah,  or  Yahveh,  the 
one  God.  At  nearly  the  same  time,  in  Jerusalem, 
where  a  daughter  of  Jezebel,  reigning  as  a  dowager 
queen,  had  attempted  to  extinguish  the  royal 
family  of  the  house  of  David,  a  similar  revolution 


Assyrian  Conquests  hi 

restored  the  worsh'p  of  Jehovah  and  slew  the 
priests  of  the  false  gods. 

Through  Jehu's  reign  and  that  of  his  son  the 
long  and  losing  struggle  of  Israel  with  Damascus 
went  on.  Jehu  had  the  weakness  to  appeal  for 
help  to  the  king  of  Assyria,  sending  gifts  that 
were  taken  as  tribute  rendered  by  a  vassal  prince. 
Not  many  years  afterwards  the  vassalage  became 
a  fact. 

Assyria 

After  Tiglathpileser  L,  for  two  centuries  (as 
stated  before),  no  important  wars  of  conquest 
appear  to  have  been  waged  by  the  Assyrian  kings. 
The  first  of  his  successors  to  emulate  his  ambition 
was  Assur-natsir-pal,  who  mounted  the  throne  in 
883  B.  C.  This  monarch,  who  made  war  with 
hideous  ferocity,  heaping  up  pyramids  of  the 
heads  of  the  slain,  extended  his  ravages  far  into 
Armenia  and  through  northern  Syria,  to  the  conquests, 
alarm  of  the  Phoenicians,  who  sent  him  tribute 
from  Sidon  and  Tyre.  His  son,  Shalmaneser  II., 
repeated  the  campaigns  of  plunder  and  destruc- 
tion in  Armenia,  penetrated  southeastern  Asia 
Minor,  and  began  the  attacks  in  southern  Syria 
which  finally  shattered  the  kingdoms  of  Hamath 
and  Damascus  and  brought  the  Assyrian  armies 
to  the  borders  of  the  Palestine  states.  It  was  to 
this  king  that  Jehu's  gifts  were  sent.  In  other 
campaigns  Shalmaneser  invaded  the  country  of  Encounter 
the  Medes  (northwestern  Persia  in  modern  *j*Jj the 
geography),  bringing  that  people  into  the  Assy- 


b.  c. 

883-781 


112 


From  David  to  Cyrus 


Conquest 
of 

Damascus. 
B.C.797(?) 


rian  inscriptions  for  the  first  time,  so  far  as 
known,  and  he  reduced  Babylonia  to  vassalage 
once  more.  His  son  had  to  do  battle  again  with 
the  Babylonians,  and  to  fight  again  with  the 
Medes,  as  well  as  with  their  neighbors,  the  Kurds. 
His  grandson,  Rimmon-nirari,  still  continued  war 
with  Medes  and  Kurds,  and  claimed  to  have  sub- 
dued the  whole  region  to  the  Caspian  Sea.  But 
the  great  exploit  of  this  last  named  monarch  was 
the  conquest  of  Damascus,  which  fell  after  long 
and  brave  resistance,  and  never  recovered  from 
the  blow.  It  is  possible,  but  not  certain,  that  the 
king  of  Israel  became  tributary  to  Assyria  at  the 
same  time.  The  death  of  Rimmon-nirari  in  781 
B.  C.  was  followed  by  another  period  of  stagna- 
tion in  the  Assyrian  monarchy,  which  lasted  until 
746,  when  the  old  dynasty  was  overthrown  by  a 
widespread  revolt,  and  a  new  era  in  Assyrian 
history  was  opened  by  a  king  of  unknown  origin, 
who  took  the  name  of  Tiglathpileser  III. 


Israel  and  Judah 

The  Assyrian  conquest  of  Damascus,  breaking 
the  aggressive  power  of  that  wealthy  Aramaean 
kingdom,  afforded  great  relief  to  both  Israel  and 
Judah,  and  was  followed  by  some  years  in  which 
they  recovered  a  considerable  part  of  the  territory 
they  had  lost.  The  northern  kingdom  grew  in 
strength  to  such  a  degree  that  Jeroboam  II.,  the 
fourth  prince  of  the  dynasty  of  Jehu,  appears  to 
have  been  the  most  powerful  of  all  the  Samarian 
kings.      But  Jeroboam's   son   was   slain   by   an 


Israel,  Judah  and  Assyria  113 

usurper,  and  a  state  of  civil  strife  ensued,  the  con- 
sequence of  which  is  thus  told  tersely  in  the 
second  book  of  Kings:  "And  Pul  [Tiglathpileser] 
the  king  of  Assyria  came  against  the  land:  and 
Menahem  [a  second  usurper  who  had  slain  Shal- 
lum,  the  first  one]  gave  Pul  a  thousand  talents  of  Vassaiage 

.  .  °*  Israel. 

silver,  that  his  hand  might  be  with  him  to  confirm  2  Kings, 
the  kingdom  in  his  hand.    And  Menahem  exacted  xv'  I9"2° 
the  money  of  Israel,  even  of  all  the  mighty  men  of 
wealth,  of  each  man  fifty  shekels  of  silver,  to  give 
to  the  king  of  Assyria.     So  the  king  of  Assyria 
turned  back,  and  stayed  not  there  in  the  land." 

Meantime,  the  kingdom  of  Judah  had  been 
rising  to  more  importance  and  exhibiting  more 
strength  than  at  any  former  time  in  its  history. 
It  had  made  gains  from  the  Philistines  and  the 
Ammonites,  and  under  Uzziah  acquired  for  a  2  Chronicles 
time  the  leading  place  among  the  Semitic  states  xrvi 
in  the  west.  It  is  thought  to  have  taken  part  in  a 
vain  attempt  to  resist  Tiglathpileser  in  his  Syrian 
campaign,  though  what  seems  to  be  an  Assyrian 
record  to  that  effect  is  open  to  some  dispute. 

The  Second  Assyrian  Empire 

The  campaigns  and  conquests  of  Tiglathpileser 
III.  assumed  a  character  very  different  from  those 
of  his  predecessors  who  had  gained  fame  in  war.  Tigiathpi- 
It  did  not  satisfy  him  to  overrun  neighboring  ^q 
countries  with   an   army  which  plundered   and  746-727 
destroyed,  exacting  tribute  and  submission  which 
another  army  would  need  to  exact  again,  and 
boasting  of  subjugations  which  the  next  king 


n4 


From  David  to  Cyrus 


McCurdy, 

History, 

Prophecy 

and  the 

Monu~ 

merits, 

I  1323-381 


Transplan- 
tation of 
conquered 
peoples 


Campaigns 
of  Tiglath- 
pileser  III. 


Revolt  of 
Israel  and 
Damascus. 
2  Kings, 
xvi 


would  have  to  repeat.  He  made  conquest  a 
reality,  and  organized  empire  to  endure  for  a 
little  time,  at  least.  He  seems  to  have  been  the 
first  of  conquerors  to  devise  measures  by  which 
such  durability  of  subjugation  could  be  secured. 
One  most  important  method  he  employed  was 
that  of  transplanting  great  masses  of  conquered 
people  to  a  new  settlement,  remote  from  their 
native  home,  and  then  colonizing  the  vacated 
country  with  Assyrian  subjects  whose  allegiance 
to  Assur  might  be  trusted  to  hold  fast.  He 
established  a  dominion  so  distinct  from  that 
existing  before  that  what  is  termed  the  Second 
Assyrian  Empire  has  been  dated  by  historians 
from  his  reign. 

The  first  campaign  of  this  able  sovereign  was 
against  a  number  of  more  or  less  nomadic  tribes, 
in  the  southern  part  of  the  great  valley,  which  the 
government  at  Babylon  had  lost  power  to  control. 
His  next  was  against  the  Medes;  his  third  was 
that  which  reached  the  land  of  Israel  and  took 
ransom  and  tribute  from  Samaria.  In  this  latter, 
the  whole  of  northern  and  middle  Syria,  with 
Cilicia  and  Cappadocia,  was  added  to  his  empire, 
and  many  thousands  of  the  population  transferred 
from  one  region  to  another.  By  his  next  under- 
taking he  broke  the  power  of  a  rising  kingdom  on 
Lake  Van,  in  Armenia,  known  as  Ararat,  which 
had  grown  defiantly  strong  in  recent  years.  Then 
he  was  summoned  into  Syria  and  Palestine  again. 
The  kings  of  Damascus  and  Israel  (Rezon  and 
Pekah)  had  dreams  of  breaking  the  Assyrian  yoke 


Overthrow  of  the  Kingdom  of  Israel  115 

of  vassalage,  and  when  Ahaz  of  Judah  (grandson 
of  Uzziah)  would  not  join  their  confederacy  for 
that  attempt  they  threatened  him  with  attack. 
Ahaz  appealed  to  Tiglathpileser  for  help,  though 
solemnly  warned  by  the  prophet  Isaiah  that  ruin 
to  the  kingdom  would  come  from  his  dependence  Isaiah 
on  that  dangerous  power.  The  Assyrian  king 
answered  the  appeal,  and  Damascus  and  Samaria 
suffered  heavily  at  his  hands.  Both  Rezon  and 
Pekah  were  slain,  and  their  crowns  went  to  new 
kings,  as  Tiglathpileser's  gift. 

A  final  campaign  in  Babylonia  was  directed 
mostly  against  the  Kaldi, — the  Kasdim  of  the 
Old  Testament, — from  whose  name  that  of 
Chaldea  was  given  ultimately  to  Babylonia  at  Jrhcj^j!di' 
large.  These  people  are  now  believed  to  have  deans 
been  comparatively  late-coming  nomads  from  the 
Arabian  desert,  who  had  settled  on  the  lower 
Tigris  and  Euphrates,  near  the  Gulf,  gradually 
increasing  and  growing  to  a  strength  beyond  the 
control  of  the  weakened  government  at  Babylon. 
Tiglathpileser  had  begun  his  reign  by  chastising 
them;  he  ended  its  activities  in  like  manner.  In 
727  B.  C.  he  died,  and  was  succeeded  by  Shal- 
maneser  IV.,  who  reigned  but  five  years. 

The  death  of  Tiglathpileser  was  the  signal  for 
revolts,  the  most  important  of  which,  historically,  Destruction 
was   that   of  Hosea,   the   vassal-king   of   Israel.  °ftheking- 

7  °  dom  of 

Shalmaneser  proceeded  to  crush  the  offender,  and  Israel- 
was  laying  siege  to  Samaria  when  he  died.    His 
successor,  Sargon  the  Later,  founder  of  the  last 
and  greatest  Assyrian  dynasty,   completed   the 


n6 


From  David  to  Cyrus 


2  "Kings, 
xvii,  and 
xviii,  9-12 


The 

imaginary 
"lost  ten 
tribes" 


Sargon  the 

Later. 

B.C. 

722-705 


reduction  of  the  city,  and  accomplished  the  doom 
which  now  fell  upon  the  kingdom  of  the  ten 
tribes.  As  stated  in  the  Hebrew  Scriptures,  he 
"carried  Israel  away  into  Assyria,  and  placed 
them  in  Halah  and  in  Habor  by  the  river  of 
Gozan,  and  in  the  city  of  the  Medes."  As  stated 
in  the  recovered  records  of  Sargon,  he  took  27,280 
of  the  leading  people,  their  families  and  followers, 
and  deported  them  to  regions  not  named.  This, 
it  will  be  seen,  was  very  far  from  being  a  trans- 
plantation of  the  nation,  and,  consequently,  there 
never  were  any  mysteriously  "lost  tribes  of 
Israel"  to  be  sought  for  in  distant  parts  of  the 
world.  The  greater  part  of  the  people  were  left  in 
northern  Palestine,  where  they  simply  lost  their 
tribal  and  national  identity.  The  few  thousands 
removed  to  Media  and  to  the  banks  of  the  Gozan, 
in  Mesopotamia,  were  absorbed,  without  doubt. 
The  ten  tribes  and  the  kingdom  of  Israel  ceased  as 
such  to  exist,  but  the  tribes  were  "lost"  in  no 
unexplained  sense. 

Sargon  dealt  in  like  manner  with  revolts  in 
Syria  and  other  parts  of  his  wide  dominion, 
vigorously  maintaining  the  empire  which  Tiglath- 
pileser  had  left  and  carrying  out  the  policy  which 
that  able  monarch  had  planned.  He  crushed  the 
stubborn  resistance  in  Armenia  and  Media  to 
Assyrian  rule.  He  attacked  the  Philistines, 
capturing  Gaza  and  Ashdod,  and  transporting 
9,000  inhabitants  from  the  former  to  other  parts 
of  his  realm.  His  most  serious  conflict  was  with 
the   indomitable   Chaldeans   of  southern   Baby- 


The  Siege  of  Jerusalem  117 

Ionia,  one  of  whose  chieftains,  in  alliance  with  the 
Elamites,  had  seized  Babylon  itself  and  made 
himself  king  in  that  ancient  seat  of  Semitic  power. 
For  twelve  years  this  Chaldean  intruder,  Mero- 
dach-baladan,  held  the  Babylonian  throne;  but 
in  709  B.  C.  he  was  expelled.  Four  years  later 
Sargon  was  murdered  by  a  soldier,  and  his  son,  erib  b.  c. 
Sennacherib,  reigned  in  his  place.  7°s     l 

The  first  task  of  Sennacherib  was  to  repeat  the 
expulsion  of  Merodach-baladan  from  Babylon, 
where  the  latter  had  been  reinstated  on  Sargon's 
death.     Soon  afterward  the  new  king  was  called 
to  the  west  by   a   great  confederate   rebellion,  McCurdy, 
which    Merodach-baladan    had    done    much    to  Prophecy, 
instigate,  and  which  was  weakened  seriously  by  a^f0^_ 
his   fall.     Another   instigation   had   come   from  menu, 
Egypt,  which  now  ventured  to  move  in  resistance 
to  the  Assyrian  kings,  whose  conquests  had  been 
pushed  to  its  very  gates.    With  promises  of  help 
from  Egypt,  the  Phoenician  and  Philistine  cities 
defied  their  Assyrian  master,  and  Hezekiah,  king 
of  Judah,  joined  their  league,  against  the  earnest 
counsel  and  warning  of  Isaiah,  greatest  of  the  warnings  of 
Hebrew  prophets,  who  saw  the  hopelessness  of  the  isaiah 
revolt  and  held  it  to  be  contrary  to  the  purposes  of 
the  Lord.    At  the  same  time,  when  the  wrathful 
Assyrian  appeared  in  Palestine  with  a  great  army, 
to  chastise  his  rebellious  vassals,  and  when  he 
blockaded  Jerusalem,  it  was  Isaiah  who  inspired 
the  weak-hearted  king  and  people  to  hold  the  city 
against  him.     The  wisdom  of  the  prophet  was  jemsalem. 
proved  by  the  result.     All  resistance  to  Senna- 


B.  C.  701 


Ii8 


2  Kings, 

sviii-xix. 

Isaiah, 

xxxvi- 

xxxvii 


Deporta- 
tion of 
Jewish 
people 


The 

Assyrians 
stricken. 
2  Kings, 
xh.,  35     , 


From  David  to  Cyrus 

cherib  except  the  resistance  of  Jerusalem  was 
vain.  The  forces  sent  from  Egypt  to  the  help  of 
the  confederates  were  beaten;  the  Phoenician 
cities  were  humbled;  those  of  Philistia  were 
punished  severely;  the  country  and  the  lesser 
towns  of  Judah  were  plundered  and  devastated, 
and  a  vast  multitude  of  their  inhabitants  was 
carried  into  captivity.  Sennacherib,  in  an  in- 
scription, tells  the  tale  of  his  deeds  within  the 
kingdom  of  Hezekiah.  He  says:  "I  took  200,150 
people,  small  and  great,  male  and  female,  horses, 
mules,  asses,  camels,  oxen,  and  sheep  without 
number,  from  the  midst  of  them  I  brought  out, 
and  I  counted  them  as  spoil.  Himself  [Hezekiah], 
as  a  bird  in  a  cage,  in  the  midst  of  Jerusalem,  his 
royal  city,  I  shut  up."  Inasmuch  as  the  Jewish 
narratives  of  this  occurrence  say  nothing  of  any 
deportation  of  inhabitants  from  Judah,  some 
have  argued  that  the  Assyrian  inscription  means 
only  that  they  were  compelled  to  give  allegiance 
to  Sennacherib;  but  such  a  construction  of  the 
language  seems  forced.  The  200,150  people,  as 
well  as  the  animals  taken,  were  clearly  counted  as 
"spoil"  and  carried  away.  A  heavy  fine  was  also 
levied,  which  Hezekiah  stripped  gold  from  the 
temple  to  pay.  But  Jerusalem  was  not  entered; 
nor  did  Sennacherib  advance  into  Egypt,  as  he 
had  intended  to  do.  His  army  was  stricken  by 
some  pestilence,  so  sorely  that  he  "departed,  and 
went  and  returned,  and  dwelt  at  Nineveh." 

During  much  of  the  remainder  of  his  reign, 
Sennacherib  was  engaged  in  struggles  with  the 


Sennacherib's  Empire  119 

Chaldeans  and  the  Elamites  for  the  mastery  of 
Babylon.  At  length,  in  689  B.  C,  he  captured 
the  venerable  and  famous  great  capital  and 
destroyed  it,  leaving  a  heap  of  ruin,  on  which  his 
son   and   successor,   Esar-haddon,    built   a   new  ~  ,  , 

7  7  m  Babylon 

Babylon  some  years  after.    Esar-haddon  gained  destroyed 
the  throne  in  681  B.  C,  after  a  war  of  four  months 
with  two  of  his  brothers,  who  had  murdered  their  Pjj 

'  haddon. 

father,  Sennacherib.    At  some  undefined  time  in  b.  c. 
his  reign  he  drove  back  from  his  borders  a  terrify- 
ing horde  of  nomadic  people  from  the  northern 
shores  of  the  Black  Sea.    These  invaders,  whom 
the  Greeks  called  Cimmerians,  may  have  been  a 
division  of  that  migratory  procession  of  Aryan- 
tongued  tribes  which  the  Hindus,  the  Medes  and  merians 
the    Persians    are    supposed    to    have    led    into 
southern   Asia   from    somewhere   in   the   north. 
Apparently  the  repulse  from  Assyria  drove  the 
Cimmerians  westward  into  Asia  Minor  and  east- 
ward towards  the  Caspian,  to  join  the  Medes. 
Esar-haddon  conducted,  also,  an  energetic  cam- 
paign  in  the  Arabian  deserts,   against  its  wild 
tribes.    His  grand  achievement,  however,  was  the  Assyrian 
conquest  of  Egypt,  to  which  he  applied  himself  in  Egypt"1  ° 
a  series  of  campaigns,  extending  from  673  to  668  B- c-  673- 

B   C,  when  he  died. 

Egypt 

From  the  reign  of  Ramses  III.,  when  our  thread 
of   Egyptian    history   was    dropped,    until    this 
Assyrian  conquest,  little  is  known  of  Egyptian 
history  that  needs  to  be  told.    The  successors  of  (Seepage 
the  third  Ramses  in  the  Twentieth  Dynasty  lost  69) 


120 


From  David  to  Cyrus 


Twenty- 

first- 

Twenty- 

fifth 

dynasties 


Expulsion 
of  the 
Ethiopian 
pharaoh 


or  wasted  the  imperial  authority  that  he  had 
recovered,  and  allowed  their  prerogatives  to  be 
taken  from  them  gradually  by  the  high  priests  of 
Ammon,  at  Thebes,  until  the  latter  supplanted 
them  in  title  as  well  as  in  fact.  A  dynasty  of 
priestly  pharaohs  (the  Twenty-first)  occupied  the 
throne  for  a  century  or  more,  and  was  followed  by 
one  which  the  army,  composed  mostly  of  Libyan 
mercenaries,  appears  to  have  set  up.  One  vigor- 
ous king  in  this  Twenty-second  Dynasty  was 
Shishak,  who  invaded  Palestine  and  plundered 
Jerusalem  in  the  reign  of  Rehoboam;  but  the 
monarchy  soon  fell  again  into  a  feeble  and  broken 
state.  The  nominal  sovereignty  of  the  pharaohs 
at  Thebes  was  scorned  and  defied  by  a  score  of 
princes  who  reigned  independently  in  different 
parts  of  the  land.  From  the  strongest  of  these 
came  a  family,  in  the  Nubian  province,  which 
assumed  royal  rank,  as  kings  of  Ethiopia,  and 
which  finally  dominated  all  the  lesser  princes  in 
the  whole  valley  of  the  Nile.  In  728  B.  C,  the 
then  reigning  king  of  Ethiopia,  Shabakah,  de- 
posed the  last  pharaoh  of  two  nominal  dynasties 
(Twenty-third  and  Twenty-fourth)  which  had 
retained  meantime  a  petty  realm  in  the  Delta, 
and  took  the  title  to  himself,  founding  an  Ethio- 
pian dynasty,  known  as  the  Twenty-fifth.  It 
was  this  dynasty  that  Esar-haddon,  the  Assyrian, 
overthrew,  driving  the  third  and  last  pharaoh  of 
its  line,  Tirhakah,  back  to  Ethiopia,  and  organiz- 
ing a  government  of  vassal  princes  in  Egypt,  with 
one  Necho,  of  Sais,  for  their  chief. 


Arch  of  Temple  of  Ramses  IV 

From  a  French  photograph  of  the  "Porte  Triomphe"  of  the  Temple  of  Ramses  IV  at 

Karnak,  Thebes 


Decline  and  Fall  of  the  Pharaohs  121 

The  Assyrian  conquest,   however,  was  never 
made  secure.     Esar-haddon  and  his  son,  Assur- 
bani-pal,    who    succeeded    him    in    668,    strove 
against    revolts    and    Ethiopian    attacks,    which  indeed-0 
Tirhakah  led  again  and  again,  until  660  B.  C,  !"ceby  . 

'  Psammeti- 

when  Psammetichus,  son  of  Necho,  whom  the  chus 
Assyrian     kings     had    made    their    viceregent,  B-C66°- 
declared   the   independence   of   his   sovereignty, 
restored  order  and  authority,  and  established  a 
native  dynasty  which   ruled   Egypt  for  ninety 
years.     Psammetichus  and  his  successors  culti- 
vated   relations    with    the    Greeks,    with    great  Greeks  in 
advantage  to  themselves.    The  Greeks  were  then  ^gy?t- 

°  8  Gardner, 

pushing  themselves  with  surpassing  energy  into  New  chap- 
every  field  they  could  reach,  as  navigators  and  ^IsLyT 
merchants   in  one  capacity,   and   as   mercenary  ch-7 
soldiers  and  adventurers  in  another.    Egypt  now 
employed  them  in  both.    They  were  permitted  to 
establish  themselves  in  a  colony  at  Naucratis, 
near  the  Canobic  branch  of  the  Nile,  and  that 
became  an  important  seat  of  their  trade.    They 
built  a  fleet  of  ships  for  Necho  II.,  the  son  of 
Psammetichus,  who  interested  himself  in  naviga- 
tion as  no  Egyptian  had  done  before.     He  is  v°ya8e 

oy  r  m  ,    ,  round 

reputed  to  have  sent  out  an  exploring  expedition  Africa 
which  sailed  round  the  continent  of  Africa,  more 
than  two  thousand  years  before  Vasco  da  Gama's  The 

TT  i       r         1  1  attempted 

voyage.     He  attempted,  furthermore,  the  con-  Suez  canal 
struction  of  a  Suez  canal,  from  the  Mediterranean 
to  the  Red  Sea,  but  failed  after  wasting  an  im- 
mense number  of  lives  in  the  work. 


122  From  David  to  Cyrus 

Decline  and  Fall  of  Assyria 

When  Psammetichus,  in  Egypt,  declared  his 
independence  of  Assyria,  that  power  had  entered 
the  early  stages  of  a  rapid  decline.  Its  long  bar- 
baric career  of  destructive  war  and  rapine  was 
drawing  towards  the  end.  Its  kings  had  carved 
with  their  cruel  swords  a  wider  empire  than  they 
had  strength  to  hold,  against  the  deathless  hatred 
which  burned  always  through  all  its  length  and 
breadth.  Assur-bani-pal  (the  Sardanapalus  of 
the  Greeks)  was  as  fierce  and  merciless  as  any  in 
their  lists,  and  apparently  as  energetic  and  able 
Assur-bani-  -n  w        but  ke  j^  c\v{\[zed  tastes,  withal,  and  it 

paHoardan-  '  '  ' 

apaius).       may  be  that  they  seduced  him  at  length  into 
668-626       negligence  of  the  sword,  which  Assyria  must  keep 
busy  or  die.     In  every  direction  he  had  to  deal 
Eulorytf    w*tn  revolt,  fostered  treacherously  by  his  brother, 
Babylonia     whQ    had    been   given   the    Babylonian    throne. 
2:246-295    Everywhere  but  in  Egypt  he  crushed  it  with  an 
unsparing  hand;    he  drove  his  brother  to  self- 
destruction;  he  devastated  Elam;  and  yet  all  the 
power  he  wielded  seems  to  have  been  crumbling 
in  his  hands  when  he  died.    But  in  his  later  years 
he  did  that  which  yielded  the  one  gift  of  value 
from  Assyria  to  the  world.     He  collected  in  his 
palace  at  Nineveh  an  immense  library  of  clay 
tablets,  for  which  he  searched  the  ancient  libra- 
The  library  ries  of  Babylonia  for  poems,  legends,  records  of 
bani-pal"      history,  religious  writings,  rituals  and  formulas  of 
magic,  grammars,  dictionaries,  syllabaries,  etc., 
representing  the  literature,  the  knowledge,  and 
the  superstition  of  Sumer,  Accad  and  later  Baby- 


The  Great  Library  of  Assur-bani-pal  123 

Ionia,  as  well  as  of  Assyria,  and  caused  copies  to 
be  made.  By  this  collection  he  preserved  a  price- 
less store  of  information  concerning  the  early 
culture  of  mankind;  for  the  most  precious  treas- 
ure found  buried  in  the  ruins  of  Nineveh  is  that 
furnished  by  the  remains  of  the  library  of  Assur- 
bani-pal. 

Assur-bani-pal   died   in   626   B.    C,    and   the 
Assyrian  empire   survived   him   not  more  than  Last  years 
twenty  years.     Of  the  course  of  events  in  those  of  A.ssynan 

J    *  t  empire 

few  last  years  very  little  has  been  learned.  No 
inscriptions  yet  found  tell  the  story  of  the  empire 
to  its  end,  and  traditions  repeated  by  Herodotus 
and  other  Greek  writers  of  after  times  do  not 
agree.  The  main  facts  which  seem  probable  are 
these:  Either  before  or  soon  after  the  death  of 
Assur-bani-pal,  the  Chaldeans  regained  control  of 
Babylon  and  made  one  Nabopolassar  king.  This 
had  its  natural  connection  with  a  general  break- 
ing up  of  the  Assyrian  dominion,  which  Assur- 
bani-pal  saw  beginning  and  which  proceeded 
rapidly  in[the  following  reigns.  Barely  the  names 
of  two  kings  in  that  brief  final  period  have  been 
learned.  The  last  of  them,  Sin-shar-ishkun, 
seems  to  have  had  strength  and  courage  to  invade 
the  northern  provinces  of  Babylonia,  and  while  so 
engaged  was  attacked  by  the  Medes.  The  latter 
had  old  scores  of  invasion,  conquest  and  oppres- 
sion to  settle  with  Assyria,  which  they  might  have 
cleared  sooner  if  they  had  not  been  struggling 
with  a  fresh  swarm  of  migrant  nomads  from  the 
north.     These,  the  Scythians,  whose  desolating 


124  From  David  to  Cyrus 

invasion  of  Asia  reached  to  even  the  borders  of 
Egypt,  had  just  been  repelled  by  the  Medes,  and 
that  warlike  people  was  now  free  to  strike  venge- 
fully  at  the  sinking  Assyrian  power.  According 
to  some  accounts  the  Medes  and  the  Babylonians 
were  allies  in  the  attack;  but  Herodotus  ascribes 
Medes  and  ^Q  fatal  blow  to  the  former  alone.  Of  that  death- 
Babyioni-  blow,  which  suddenly  and  utterly  ended  Assyrian 
Assyria  history,  we  have  fables  and  guesses  to  help  us 
imagine  the  awful  scene,  and  we  are  not  likely  to 
have  more.  The  last  Assyrian  army  that  ever 
fought  was  driven  back  within  the  walls  of 
Nineveh,  and  there,  at  the  end  of  some  hopeless 
defense,  the  army,  the  city,  the  king  and  the 
people  were  blotted  forever  from  the  records  of 
the  world. 

The  unrecorded  and  mysterious  catastrophe 
(which  occurred  probably  in  606  B.  C.)  seems 
The  end  of  aPPa^mo  '■>  but  was  it  not,  after  all,  the  just  end  of 
a  barbaric  a  brutally  barbaric  career?  It  is  difficult  to  see 
that  the  Assyrians  had  ever  earned  a  tear  from 
mankind  for  their  tragical  fate.  They  gave  really 
nothing  to  the  world,  save,  unwittingly,  the  use 
of  their  clay  heaps  of  ruin  for  the  burial  and  keep- 
ing of  precious  records  and  writings  from  the  older 
nation  of  the  south.  What  they  represented  in 
civilization  was  a  varnish  from  Babylon,  which 
coated  a  fierce  savagery  that  it  could  not  hide. 
Their  chief  work  in  the  six  centuries  of  their  power 
was  to  slay,  pillage  and  destroy.  They  ravaged 
western  Asia  from  Arabia  to  Asia  Minor  and  from 
Elam    to    the    Caspian    Sea.      They    destroyed 


:areer 


The  Destroyers  of  Assyria  125 

Damascus  and  Samaria  and  Memphis  in  Egypt 
and  Babylon.  Who  can  imagine  what  venerable 
literatures  and  arts  and  growths  of  ancient  cul- 
ture may  have  perished  at  their  barbarous  hands! 
It  was  fit  that  Nineveh  should  be  cast  down  with  _ 

Destruction 

violence  bv  another  barbaric  race,  and  that  it  °*  Nineveh. 

J  .  .  B.C.  606  (?) 

should  be  left  in  sudden  emptiness  and  desolation, 
while  rains  and  floods  spread  the  slime  of  broken 
clay  walls  over  all  the  vast  heap  of  its  ruin,  and 
hid  what  it  held,  keeping  the  precious  secret  for 
disclosure  to  a  future  generation, — the  sole 
bequest  it  had  to  make. 

The  Short-lived  Median  Empire 

For  half  a  century  after  the  fall  of  Nineveh,  the 
late  Assyrian  empire  was  divided  mostly  between 
Babylon  and  Media;  both  of  which  were  then 
engulfed  in  the  conquests  of  Cyrus  the  Great. 
The  annals  of  Media  in  this  interval  are  little 
known;  but  a  mass  of  fiction  relating  to  the  two 
kings  of  the  period,  Cyaxares  and  Astyages,  was 
gathered  by  the  Greeks.  Cyaxares,  after  the 
destruction  of  Assyria,  appears  to  have  subju- 
gated the  greater  part  if  not  the  whole  of  Iran,  and 
established  relations  of  friendship  with  Lydia  and 
Babylon.  He  made  his  capital,  Ecbatana,  one  of 
the  splendid  cities  of  the  east.  He  died  in  593, 
and  his  son,  Astyages,  reigned  until  the  monarchy 

fell. 

Chaldean  Babylonia 

The  Chaldean  empire  of  Babylonia,  which  rose 
on  the  ruins  of  Assyria,  was  less  the  work  of  its 


126   '  From  David  to  Cyrus 

first  king,  Nabopolassar,  than  of  Nebuchadnez- 
zar, or  Nebuchadrezzar,  his  son.     Even  in  the 
Nebuchad-    xif etiirrL^  of  his  father,  Nebuchadnezzar  appears  to 

nezzar.  '  r  r 

B.C. 604-  have  been  charged,  to  a  great  extent,  with  the 
operations  of  war.  His  first  serious  encounter 
Rogers,  was  with  Necho  II.,  of  Egypt,  the  son  of  Psam- 
and Assyria  nietichus,  who  attempted  to  seize  a  share  of  the 
2:316-353  Assyrian  domain.  Necho  had  overrun  Palestine 
and  Syria,  in  the  year  before  Nineveh  fell;  but 
when  he  attempted,  in  a  second  campaign,  to  lay 
hands  on  the  northern  part  of  Mesopotamia,  he 
was  met  by  Nebuchadnezzar  at  Carchemish,  on 
the  Euphrates,  and  defeated  so  crushingly  that 
he  fled  back  to  Egypt,  making  no  other  stand. 
Nebuchadnezzar  followed,  accepting  the  submis- 
sion of  the  princes  who  had  lately  bowed  to 
Necho,  and  was  about  to  pursue  the  latter  into 
Egypt  when  news  reached  him  of  his  father's 
death.  He  hastened  back  to  Babylon  to  secure 
his  crown,  and  Egypt,  for  the  moment,  was 
spared. 

The  long  reign  of  Nebuchadnezzar,  from  604 
Public  until  562  B.  C,  was  filled  much  more  with 
works  of       activities    of    building,    to    make    Babylon    the 

Nebuchad-  .  .  °'  r      •   •  j 

nezzar  mightiest  and  most  magnificent  01  cities  and  to 
improve  the  Babylonian  system  of  canals,  than 
with  enterprises  of  war.  There  is  little  boasting 
of  battle  in  his  inscriptions,  and  nearly  all  that  is 
known  of  his  military  exploits  has  come  from 
foreign  sources,  chiefly  from  the  Hebrew  writings, 
in  which  he  is  represented  to  us  from  a  hostile 
point  of  view.    Apparently  no  other  people  suf- 


The  Jews  Taken  into  Captivity  127 

fered  so  much  at  his  hands  as  the  Jews.  Jehoia- 
kim,  king  of  Judah,  had  submitted  to  Nebuchad- 
nezzar when  Necho's  suzerainty  was  overthrown, 
and  paid  tribute  for  three  years.  Then  he  was 
persuaded  by  a  reckless  party  in  his  kingdom  to 
refuse  the  tribute,  which  was  a  declaration  of  T    . , 

7  Jewish 

revolt.     This  rash  defiance  was  opposed  by  the  refusal  of 

it  -i  •  1  j  •    1  -tribute 

prophet  Jeremiah,  as  vigorously  and  vainly  as 
Isaiah  had  opposed  the  similar  folly  of  Hezekiah,  Warnings 

1  Jjir  ai  •  1  of  Jeremiah 

a  hundred  years  belore.  A  heavier  penalty  was 
now  to  be  paid;  but  Jehoiakim  escaped  it  by  a 
timely  death,  just  before  the  arrival  of  a  Baby- 
lonian army  before  Jerusalem,  in  597  B.  C.  His 
young  son,  Jeconiah,  or  Jehoiachin,  surrendered 

the  city  with  no  attempt  to  resist.    Then  Nebu- 
la    J  ■    J  •  •     •  .The 

cnadnezzar  carried  away  into  captivity  not  only  Babylonian 
the  king  and  his  family,  but  "all  Jerusalem,  and  b. c. 597 
all  the  princes,  and  all  the  mighty  men  of  valor, 
even  ten  thousand  captives,  and  all  the  craftsmen 
and  smiths:  none  remained,  save  the  poorest  sort 
of  the  people  of  the  land;"    and  the  temple  and 
the  city  were  stripped  of  all  the  treasures  that 
could   be   found.     The   captives   were  taken   to 
Babylonia   and   established   in   a   settlement  by  2  Kings, 
"the  river  Chebar,"  which  recent  explorations  at  XX1V_XIV 
Nippur  have  shown  to  have  been  the  name  of  a 
canal  near  that  city. 

But  this  was  not  the  end.  Weakened  though 
the  nation  was  by  the  exiling  of  its  strongest 
citizens,  it  was  soon  carried  into  rebellion  again. 
Nebuchadnezzar  had  appointed  a  young  king, 
Zedekiah,  to  rule  over  it  in  his  name,  and  the  ill- 


128 


From  David  to  Cyrus 


Jewish 

rebellion 

renewed 


Destruction 
of  Jerusa- 
lem. 
B.  C.  686 


End  of  the 
kingdom 
of  David 

Nebuchad- 
nezzar's 
siege  of 
Tyre 


iated  youth  was  beguiled  by  the  then  king  of 
Egypt,  Hophra  (Necho's  successor),  into  a  league 
with  Tyre,  Sidon,  Ammon,  Moab,  and  Edom,  for 
revolt.  Again  Jeremiah  remonstrated  and  warned 
with  no  effect,  except  to  cause  his  own  imprison- 
ment as  a  suspected  traitor  and  spy.  Once  more 
Jerusalem  was  beleaguered  by  a  Babylonian 
army,  and  the  Egyptians  who  came  to  its  relief 
were  driven  back.  This  time  the  city  was 
defended  desperately  for  no  less  than  a  year  and  a 
half.  When  taken,  at  last,  in  the  month  of  July, 
586  B.  C,  it  was  pillaged  and  burned  and  the 
walls  thrown  down;  Zedekiah  was  blinded,  after 
seeing  his  sons  slain  before  his  eyes;  another 
great  multitude  of  the  inhabitants — how  many  is 
not  stated — was  carried  away  to  exile  in  Baby- 
lonia, and,  again,  the  poorest  and  weakest  were 
left  behind.  But  this  sad  remnant  of  Judah 
found  itself  unprotected  from  lawless  attacks,  and 
sought  refuge  in  Egypt;  so  that  no  vestige  of  the 
kingdom  of  David  existed  any  more. 

From  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  Nebuchad- 
nezzar went  to  Tyre,  and  began  a  siege  of  that 
sea-girt  city  which  is  said  to  have  lasted  thirteen 
years.  In  the  end  he  had  success  only  far  enough 
to  bring  the  Tyrians  to  a  capitulation  on  favor- 
able terms.  At  some  time  during  the  progress  of 
the  siege,  about  567  B.  C,  he  drew  away  part  of 
his  army  and  led  it  into  Egypt,  for  the  punish- 
ment of  King  Hophra's  malicious  intrigues. 
Apparently  his  campaign  was  no  more  than  a 
raid,  in  which  he  satisfied  his  wrath,  by  pillage 


Destruction  of  Jerusalem  129 

and  destruction,  but  made  no  attempt  to  estab- 
lish authority  in  the  land.     It  is  not  known  that 
he  was  engaged  in  any  further  undertakings  of 
war.     His  later  years  were  devoted  probably  to 
the  stupendous  works  by  which  he  made  Babylon,  Later 
more  than  ever  it  had  been  before,  the  wonder  of  Babylon*50 
the  ancient  world,  for  the  enormous  circuit  of  its  Goods  eed 
three  impregnable  walls;  for  the  perfection  of  its  History  of 
canals,  bridges  and  streets;   for  the  magnificence  ionians  and 
of  its  temples  and  palaces:   for  the  beauty  of  its  Aswians, 

r  ,  *  7  .  J  sects.  283, 

gardens  and  public  grounds.     His  Babylon  and  299-304. 
Babylonia   were   those   which   later   writers   de-  (Seepages 
scribed,  and,  knowing  them  only  as  they  existed   n5-I2--3 
then,  under  the  Chaldean  regime,  they  gave  the 
Chaldean  name  to  all  their  long  history,  which  is 
now  known  to  have  been  contrary  to  fact.    The 
Kaldi  or  Chaldeans,  as  we  have  seen,  came  into 
Babylonian   history  at  a   period   comparatively 
late. 

Nebuchadnezzar  was  succeeded  at  his  death 
(562  B.  C.)  by  his  son,  Amil-Marduk,  called  Evil- 
merodach   in   the   Bible,   who   reigned   but   two 
years  and  was  then  assassinated,  to  make  room 
for  an  usurper  of  the  throne.    The  usurper  and 
his  son  reigned  briefly,  until  556  B.  C,  when  the 
latter  fell  a  victim  to  conspiracy  and  murder,  and  Last  years 
Nabonidus,    a    man   of   excellent   qualities,    but  °f  Baby~ 
unfkted  for  government,  was  chosen  to  be  king,  empire 
Nabonidus  was  a  pious  temple-builder  and  an 
ardent  archaeologist,  so  deeply  interested  in  find- 
ing the  names  and  dates  of  early  kings,  who  had 
been  founders  of  the  ancient  temples  which  he 


130  From  David  to  Cyrus 

labored  to  restore,  that  he  neglected  his  failing 
empire  and  its  affairs.  But  the  records  of  archaeo- 
logical discovery  which  he  left  behind  him  have 
been  of  inestimable  helpfulness  to  the  scholars  of 
our  day,  who  patiently  piece  together  the  re- 
covered fragments  of  the  oldest  annals  of  man- 
kind. 

While  Nabonidus  was  busying  himself  with 
architecture  and  archaeology,  the  most  remarka- 
ble of  ancient  conquerors,  known  as  Cyrus  the 
Great,  had  arisen  in  Elam,  and  was  destined  to 
be  the  master  of  Babylon  before  many  years 
passed. 

In  the  Lands  of  the  Greeks 

While  the  Assyrians  were  pursuing  their  vio- 
lent career  to  its  violent  end,  and  the  Medes  and 
Persians,  on  the  table-land  of  Iran,  were  growing 
in  strength,  the  inhabitants  of  what  came  to  be 
Greek  lands,   in  and  around  the  y£gean,  were 
recovering  from  what  seems  to  have  been  the 
(Seepages    check  to  their  progress  in  civilization,  produced 
99-100)        ky  tke  southward  movement  of  the  Dorian  tribes, 
Semitic  and  and  were   preparing  to  open   an   extraordinary 
Hamitic       new  era  0f  culture  in  the  history  of  mankind. 

civihza- 

tions  giving  They  were  about  to  be  the  first  of  the  slow,  the 
Aryan* the  ^onS  silent,  but  the  powerful  races  of  Europe,  to 
step  out  of  prehistoric  obscurity  into  the  day- 
lighted  arenas  of  recorded  history,  and  to  guide 
them  on  new  lines  of  advance.  The  precocious 
leadership  of  Semitic  and  Hamitic  peoples  in  the 
civilization  of  the  world  was  coming  to  its  close. 


Dawn  of  a  New  Era  of  Culture  131 

Simultaneously  in  Asia  and  Europe,  the  tribes  of 
Aryan  speech, — Mede  and  Persian  in  the  one 
continent  and  Greek  in  the  other — were  grasping 
the  lordship  of  the  age;  not  as  allies,  but  as  rivals, 
between  whom  a  life-and-death  conflict  was 
waiting  in  the  future  to  be  fought  out.  But  the 
Persian  and  the  Mede  entered  history  as  the  heirs 
of  Assyria  and  the  pupils  of  Babylon,  to  pursue  in 
the  main  the  old  worn  ways,  in  the  old  worn 
grooves  of  eastern  action  and  thought;  while  the 
Greek  brought  into  the  world  a  wholly  fresh  intel- 
lectual force,  aimed  towards  wholly  different  ends. 
A  very  new  leaf  in  human  history,  written  upon  in  Birth  of  a 
this  Hellenic  corner  of  Europe,  was  preparing  to  j^ua"  e 
be  turned.  force 

The  peninsula  which  the  Greeks  or  Hellenes 
then  controlled  is  peculiarly  formed.    It  is  crossed 
in  different  directions  by  mountain  ranges,  which 
divide  the  land  into  parts  naturally  separated 
from  one  another,  and  which  form  barriers  easily 
defended   against  invading   foes.      Between   the 
mountains  lie  numerous  fertile  valleys;  while  the 
coast  is  ragged  with  gulfs  and  bays,  which  notch  py*"*1 
it  deeply  on  all  sides,  making  the  whole  main  the  Greek 
peninsula    a    cluster   of   minor    peninsulas,    and  penmsua 
supplying  the  people  with  harbors  which  invite 
them  to  a  life  of  seafaring  and  trade.     It  is  sur- 
rounded,  moreover,  with  islands,  which  repeat 
the  invitation. 

Almost  necessarily,  in  a  country  marked  with  Deveiop. 
such   features   so   strongly,   the   Greeks   became  mentof 
divided  politically  into  small  independent  states 


132 


From  David  to  Cyrus 


Early  king- 
ship 


Kings 
displaced 
by  oligar- 
chies, and 
those  by 
tyrannies. 
Thirlwall, 
History  of 
Greece, 
I  :  394-409 


— city-states  they  have  been  named — and  those 
on  the  seacoast  became  engaged  very  early  in 
trade  with  other  countries  of  the  Mediterranean 
Sea.  Every  city  of  importance  in  Greece  was 
entirely  sovereign  in  the  government  of  itself  and 
of  the  surrounding  territory  which  formed  its 
domain.  The  stronger  among  them  extended 
their  dominion  over  some  of  the  weaker  or  less 
valiant  ones;  but  even  then  independence  of  the 
subj  ect  cities  was  not  entirely  taken  away.  There 
was  no  organization  of  national  government  to 
embrace  the  whole,  nor  any  large  part,  of  Greece. 
Certain  among  the  states  were  sometimes  united 
in  temporary  leagues,  or  confederacies,  for  com- 
mon action  in  war;  but  these  were  unstable 
alliances,  rather  than  political  unions. 

In  their  earliest  form,  the  Greek  city-states 
were  governed  by  kings,  about  whose  power  there 
is  much  dispute.  But  kingship  had  disappeared 
from  most  of  the  states  in  Greece  proper  before 
they  reached  the  period  of  distinct  and  accepted 
history.  The  kings  were  displaced  first  by  aristoc- 
racies— ruling  families,  which  took  all  political 
rights  and  privileges  to  themselves,  and  allowed 
their  fellows  (whom  they  usually  oppressed)  no 
part  or  voice  in  public  afFairs.  In  most  instances 
these  aristocracies,  or  oligarchies,  were  over- 
thrown, after  a  time,  by  bold  agitators  who  stirred 
up  a  revolution,  and  then  contrived,  while  confu- 
sion prevailed,  to  gather  power  into  their  own 
hands.  Almost  every  Greek  city  had  its  time  of 
being  ruled  by  one  or  more  of  these  tyrants,  as 


The  City-States  of  the  Greeks  133 

they  were  called.  Some  of  them,  like  Pisistratus 
of  Athens,  ruled  wisely  and  justly  for  the  most 
part,  and  were  not  "tyrants"  in  the  modern  sense 
of  the  term;  but  all  who  gained  and  held  a  prince- 
ly power  unlawfully  were  so  named  by  the  Greeks. 

The  reign  of  the  tyrants  was  generally  brief. 
They  were  driven  out  of  one  city  after  another,  Fallofthe 
until  they  disappeared.    Then  the  old  aristocra-  tyrants 
cies  came  uppermost  again  in  some  cities,  and 
ruled   as  before.     But  some,   like  Athens,   had 
trained  the  whole  body  of  their  citizens  to  such 
intelligence  and  spirit  that  neither  kingship  nor 
oligarchy  would  be  endured  any  longer,  and  the 
people  undertook  to  govern  themselves.    These 
were  the  first  democracies — the  first  experiments  The  first 
in  popular  government — that  history  gives  any  democratic 
account    of.       "The    little    commonwealths    of  ^eTithTin 
Greece,"  says  a  great  historian,  "were  the  first  the  world 
states  at  once  free  and  civilized  which  the  world 
ever  saw.    They  were  the  first  states  which  gave 
birth  to  great  statesmen,  orators,  and  generals 
who  did  great  deeds,  and  to  great  historians  who  Freeman, 
set  down  those  great  deeds  in  writing.    It  was  in  Gseh^l0, 
the  Greek  commonwealths,   in   short,   that  the  European. 
political  and  intellectual  life  of  the  world  began." 
But  an  exception  to  this  democratic  tendency 
appeared  in  the  leading  Dorian  states. 

The  principal  states  founded  or  possessed  and  Sparta  and 
controlled  by  the  Dorians  in  Peloponnesus,  after  Spartans 
their    conquest,    were    Sparta,    or    Lacedcemon, 
Argos,  and  Corinth.    The  Spartans  were  the  most 
warlike  of  the  Greeks, — the  most  resolute  and 


134 


From  David  to  Cyrus 


Lycurgus 


The 

Spartan 
constitu- 
tion 


Argos 


energetic, — and  their  leadership  was  accepted 
generally  in  practical  affairs  common  to  the 
whole.  At  the  same  time  they  had  little  of  the 
intellectual  superiority  which  distinguished  some 
of  their  Hellenic  kindred  in  so  remarkable  a 
degree.  Their  state  was  organized  on  military 
principles;  its  constitution  (the  body  of  famous 
ordinances  ascribed  to  Lycurgus)  was  a  code  of 
rigid  discipline,  which  dealt  with  the  citizen  as  a 
soldier  always  under  training  for  war,  and 
demanded  from  him  the  utmost  simplicity  of  life. 
Their  form  of  government  combined  a  peculiar 
monarchy  (having  two  royal  families  and  two 
kings)  with  an  aristocratic  senate  (the  gerousia), 
and  a  democratic  assembly  (which  voted  on 
matters  only  as  submitted  to  it  by  the  senate), 
with  an  irresponsible  executive  over  the  whole, 
consisting  of  five  men  called  the  Ephors.  This 
singular  government,  essentially  aristocratic  or 
oligarchical,  was  maintained,  with  little  disturb- 
ance or  change,  through  the  whole  independent 
history  of  Sparta.  In  all  respects,  the  Spartans 
were  the  most  conservative  and  the  least  progres- 
sive among  the  politically  important  Greeks. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  domination  of  the 
Dorians  in  Peloponnesus,  their  city  of  Argos  took 
the  lead,  and  was  the  head  of  a  league  which 
included  Corinth  and  other  city-states.  But 
Sparta  soon  rose  to  rivalry  with  Argos;  then 
reduced  it  to  a  secondary  place,  and  subjugated  it 
completely  in  the  end. 

The  extensive  shifting  of  population  which  had 


The  Spartans  and  Their  Constitution  135 

produced  its  most  important  result  in  the  inva- 
sion of  Peloponnesus  by  the  Dorians,  must  have 
caused  great  commotions  and  changes  throughout 
the  whole  Greek  peninsula;  and  quite  as  much 
north  of  the  Corinthian  isthmus  as  in  the  south. 
But  in  the  part  which  lies  nearest  to  the  isthmus 
— the  branch  peninsula  of  Attica — the  old  inhab- 
itants appear  to  have  held  their  ground,  repelling 
invaders,  and  their  country  was  affected  only  by 
an  influx  of  fugitives,  flying  from  the  conquered 
Peloponnesus.  The  Attic  people  were  more 
nearly  akin  to  the  expelled  Achaians  and  Ionians 
than  to  the  conquering  Dorians,  although  a  com-  Fusion  of 
mon  brotherhood  in  the  Hellenic  race  was  recog-  Achaians 

,     .  11         ttti  t  •  i  and  Ionians 

nized  by  all.  Whatever  distinction  there  may 
have  been  before  between  Achaians  and  Ionians 
now  practically  disappeared,  and  the  Ionic  name 
became  common  to  the  whole  branch  of  the  ^he 
Greek  people  which  derived  itself  from  them. 
The  important  division  of  the  race  through  all  its 
subsequent  history  was  between  Dorians  and 
Ionians.  The  iEolians  constituted  a  third  less 
important  division. 

The  distinction  between  Ionians  and  Dorians 
seems  to  have  been  very  real,  in  character  no  less 
than  in  traditions  and  name.  The  Ionians  were 
the  superior  Greeks  on  the  intellectual  side.  It 
was  among  them  that  the  wonderful  genius 
resided  which  produced  the  greater  marvels  of 
Greek  literature,  philosophy  and  art.  It  was 
among  them,  too,  that  the  institutions  of  political 
freedom  were  carried  to  their  highest  attainment. 


136  From  David  to  Cyrus 

ioniansand  Their  chief  city  was  Athens,  and  the  splendor  of 
Dorians  its  history  bears  testimony  to  their  unexampled 
genius.  On  the  other  hand,  the  Dorians  were  less 
thoughtful,  it  appears,  less  imaginative,  less 
broad  in  judgment  or  feeling — less  susceptible,  it 
would  seem,  of  a  high  refinement  of  culture;  but 
no  less  capable  in  practical  pursuits,  no  less  vigor- 
ous in  effective  action,  and  much  sounder  in  their 
moral  constitution.  Sparta,  which  stood  at  the 
head  of  the  Doric  states,  contributed  almost 
nothing  to  Greek  literature,  Greek  thought, 
Greek  art,  or  Greek  commerce,  but  exercised  a 
great  influence  on  Greek  political  history.  Other 
Corinth  Doric  states,  especially  Corinth,  were  foremost  in 
commercial  and  colonizing  enterprise,  and  at- 
tained some  brilliancy  of  artistic  civilization,  but 
not  much  originality  appears  in  what  they  did. 

As  stated  heretofore,  the  Greeks  were  once  sup- 
posed to  have  received  far  more  teaching  from  the 
Greeks  and  Phoenicians,  in  navigation  and  in  commercial 
Phoenicians  enterprise  especially,  than  now  seems  to  be  the 
fact.  Without  doubt  there  was  a  time,  after  the 
fall  of  the  Cretan  sea-power  and  of  the  Mycenaean 
domination,  during  which  the  Phoenicians  were 
active  in  Greek  waters  and  influenced  the  new 
development  of  Greek  life  in  some  degree.  But 
that  period  cannot  have  been  long,  and  it  seems  to 
have  had  no  great  effect.  The  Greeks  were  soon 
rivaling  the  Phoenicians  in  trading  and  colonizing 
energy,  not  only  within  their  own  sea  but  far 
beyond.  They  occupied  the  coast  of  Asia  Minor 
and  the  islands  on  both  their  own  coasts.    The 


XXII- 

xxm 


Greek  Colonies  137 

Ionian  Greeks  were  the  principal  colonizers  of  the  Greek 
Asiatic  shore  and  of  the  Cyclades.    On  the  former  colonies, 
and  near  it  they  founded  twelve  towns  of  note,  Grote> 
including  Samos,  Miletus,  Ephesus,  Chios,  and  History  of 
PhocEea,  which  are  among  the  more  famous  cities  3  :ch' 
of  ancient  times.    Their  important  island  settle 
ments  in  the  Cyclades  were  Naxos,  Delos,  Melos, 
and  Paros.     They  possessed,  likewise,  the  great 
island  of  Eubcea,  with  its  two  wealthy  cities  of 
Chalcis  and  Eretria.    These,  with  Attica,  consti- 
tuted, in  the  main,  the  Ionic  portion  of  Hellas. 

The  Dorians  occupied  the  islands  of  Rhodes 
and  Cos,  and  founded  on  the  coast  of  Asia  Minor 
the  cities  of  Halicarnassus  and  Cnidus. 

The  important  iEolian  colonies  in  Asia  were 
Smyrna  (acquired  later  by  the  lonians),  Temnos, 
Larissa,  and  Cyme.  Of  the  islands  they  occupied 
Lesbos  and  Tenedos. 

From  these  settlements  on  neighboring  coasts 
and  islands  the  vigorous  Greeks  pushed  on  to 
more  distant  fields.     It  is  probable  that  their 
colonies  were  in  Cyprus  and  Crete  before  the 
eighth  century,  B.  C.     In  the  seventh  century 
B.  C,  during  the  time  of  confusion  and  weakness 
in    Egypt    which    attended    and    followed    the 
Assyrian    conquest    by    Esar-haddon    they    had 
entered  that  country  as  allies  or  as  mercenaries  of  (See  page 
Necho    and    Psammetichus,    and    had    founded,  I2l) 
about  660  B.  C,  on  the  Canobic  branch  of  the  Greeks  in 
Nile,  a  city,  Naucratis,  which  became  an  import-  £g^pt-  , 

•  1  1  r  ,     •  1  BC  7th 

ant  agent  in  the  exchange  of  arts  and  ideas,  as  century 
well  as  of  merchandise,  between  the  Nile  and  the 


138  From  David  to  Cyrus 

iEgean.  Within  a  few  years  past  the  site  of 
Naucratis  has  been  uncovered  by  explorers,  and 
much  has  been  brought  to  light  that  was  obscure 
in  Greek  and  Egyptian  history  before. 

Within  the  same  seventh  century,  Cyrene  and 
Barca  had  been  built  on  the  African  coast,  farther 
west.     Even   a   century   before   that   time,   the 
Corinthians    had    taken    possession    of   Corcyra 
(modern    Corfu),    and    they,    with   the   men   of 
Chalcis  and  Megara,  had  been  actively  founding 
cities  that  grew  great  and  rich,  in  Sicily  and  in 
southern  Italy,  which  latter  acquired  the  name  of 
Magna        "Magna   Grsecia"    (Great   Greece).     At   a   not 
Graeda        much  later  time  they  had  pressed  northwards  to 
the  Euxine  or  Black  Sea,  and  had  scattered  settle- 
ments along  the  Thracian  and  Macedonian  coast, 
Byzantium  including  one   (Byzantium)   on  the   Bosphorus, 
which  became,  after  a  thousand  years  had  passed, 
the  imperial  city  of  Constantinople.    About  597 
B.  C,  the  Phocseans  had  planted  a  colony  at  Mas- 
silia,  in  southern  Gaul,  from  which  sprang  the 
great  city  known  in  modern  times  as  Marseilles. 
And  much  of  all  this  had  been  done,  by  Ionians 
Massilia       an<3  Dorians  together,  before  Athens  (in  which 
(Marseilles)  Attica  now  centered  itself,   and  which  loomed 
finally  greater  in  glory  than  the  whole  Hellenic 
world  besides)  had  made  a  known  mark  in  history. 
Moreover,  in  this  time,  before  Athens  had  im- 
portance in  history,  the  rare  literary  genius  of  the 
Early  Greeks  had  borne  already  the  fruits  of  its  first  rich 

uterature     season,  not  only  in  the  great  Homeric  epics,  but  in 
lyric    poetry    that    has    never    been    surpassed. 


Greek  Literature  139 

Archilochus,  Alcseus,  Sappho,  Anacreon,  Pindar, 

are  among  the  singers  of  the  seventh  and  sixth 

centuries  before  Christ,  whose  songs  are  known  to 

the  modern  world  by  just  enough  to  show  how 

strong  in  passion,  how  fine  in  imagination  and 

thought  and  how  perfect  in  art  they  were.    The  Homeric 

Homeric  poems  were  yet  earlier  in  time, — how  poems 

much  earlier  is  a  question  still  under  debate.    The  Gardner, 

x  m   m  New  chap- 

greater  weight  of  present  day  opinion  seems  to  be  ters  in 

against  the  belief  that  the  Iliad  and  the  Odyssey  history, 
were  composed  by  one  poet  at  one  time.    If  they  ch- v- 
were   formed    out   of   various   poems,    collected 
finally  and  unified  by  epic-makers  of  a  later  day, 
then  parts  may  be  as  ancient  as  the  twelfth  cen- 
tury, to  which  some  critics  would  assign  the  whole 
work,  and  parts  may  be  as  recent  as  the  eighth 
century,  to  which  others  would  bring  it  down. 
Between  those  centuries  the  songs  of  the  Hebrew 
psalmists  were  heard  in  Israel  and  Judah;   while 
the  solemn  chants  of  the  prophets  were  near  in  The  two 
time  to  the  light  strains  of  the  lyric  poets  of  sreat 

r>  01  i-  r  •  literatures 

Lrreece.    bo  the  two  great  literatures  01  antiquity  ofantiquity 
sprang  from  generations  that  were  not  far  apart. 
At  first  there  had  been  kings  in  Athens,  and 
legends  had  gathered  about  their  names  which 
give  modern  historians  a  groundwork  for  critical 
guessing,  and  scarcely  more.    Then  the  king  dis- 
appeared and  a  magistrate  called  archon  took  his 
place,  who  held  office  for  only  ten  years.    The 
archons  are  believed  to  have  been  chosen  first  ofAthenian 
from  the  old  royal  family  alone;  but  after  a  time  hlstory 
the  office  was  thrown  open  to  all  noble  families. 


140  From  David  to  Cyrus 

This  was  the  aristocratic  stage  of  political  evolu- 
tion in  the  city-state.  The  next  step  was  taken  in 
683  B.  C.  (which  is  said  to  be  the  beginning  of 

B.C.  683  authentic  Athenian  chronology)  when  nine 
archons  were  created,  in  place  of  the  one,  and 
their  term  of  office  was  reduced  to  a  single  year. 

Sixty  years  later,  about  621  B.  C,  the  people  of 
Athens  obtained  their  first  code  of  written  law, 
ascribed  to  one  Draco,  and  described  as  a  code  of 

The  Draco-  much  severity.    But  it  gave  certainty  to  law,  for 

"ia"  c°de-  the  first  time,  and  it  was  the  first  great  protective 
measure  secured  by  the  people.  In  612  B.  C.  a 
noble  named  Kylon  attempted  to  overthrow  the 
aristocratic  government  and  establish  a  tyranny 
under  himself,  but  he  failed. 

Then  there  came  forward  in  public  life  another 
noble,  who  was  one  of  the  wisest  men  and  purest 
patriots  of  any  country  or  age,  and  who  made  an 

Solon  attempt  of  quite  another  kind.    This  was  Solon, 

the  famous  lawgiver,  who  became  archon  in  594 
B.  C.  The  political  state  of  Athens  at  that  time 
has  been  described  for  us  in  an  ancient  Greek 
treatise  lately  discovered,  and  which  is  believed  to 
be  one  of  the  hitherto  lost  writings  of  Aristotle. 
"Not  only,"  says  the  author  of  this  treatise,  "was 
the  constitution  at  this  time  oligarchical  in  every 
respect,  but  the  poorer  classes,  men,  women,  and 
children,  were  in  absolute  slavery  to  the  rich. 
.  .  .  The  whole  country  was  in  the  hands  of  a 
few  persons,  and  if  the  tenants  failed  to  pay  their 
rent,  they  were  liable  to  be  haled  into  slavery,  and 
their  children  with  them.     Their  persons  were 


Early  Athens  and  the  Athenians  141 

mortgaged  to  their  creditors."  Solon  saw  that 
this  was  a  state  of  things  not  to  be  endured  by 
such  a  people  as  the  Athenians,  and  he  exerted 
himself  to  change  it.  He  obtained  authority  to 
frame  a  constitution  and  a  new  code  of  laws  for 

The 

the  state.  In  the  latter  he  provided  measures  for  constitution 
relieving  the  oppressed  class  of  debtors.  In  the 
former,  he  did  not  create  a  democratic  govern- 
ment, but  he  greatly  increased  the  political 
powers  of  the  people.  He  classified  them  accord- 
ing to  their  wealth,  defining  four  classes,  the 
citizens  in  each  of  which  had  certain  political 
duties  and  privileges  measured  to  them  by  the 
extent  of  their  income  and  estate.  But  the  whole 
body  of  citizens,  in  their  general  assembly  (the  ™^ 
ecclesia),  were  given  the  important  right  of  choos- 
ing the  annual  archons,  whom  they  must  select, 
however,  from  the  ranks  of  the  wealthiest  class. 
At  the  same  time,  Solon  enlarged  the  powers  of 
the  old  aristocratic  senate — the  areopagus — giv- 
ing it  a  supervision  of  the  execution  of  the  laws 
and  a  censorship  of  the  morals  of  the  people. 

"These  changes  did  not  constitute  democracy,  The 
— a  form  of  government  then  unknown,  and  for  areopagus 
which  there  was  as  yet  no  word  in  the  Greek  lan- 
guage.   But  they  initiated  the  democratic  spirit. 
.     .     .     Athens,  thus  fairly  started  on  her  way, — 
emancipated   from  the  discipline  of  aristocratic 
school-masters,  and  growing  into  an  age  of  manly 
liberty     and     self-restraint,  —  came     eventually  Fowler, 
nearer  to  the  ideal  of  'the  good  life'  [Aristotle's  ^^ 
phrase]  than  any  other  state  in  Hellas." 


142 


From  David  to  Cyrus 


Union  of 
Latins  and 
Sabines  in 
founding 
Rome 


In  the  Italian  Peninsula 

While  the  Greeks  in  this  period  were  entering 
the  open  field  of  recorded  history,  their  kinsmen 
in  the  next  western  peninsula,  the  Romans,  were 
only,  as  yet,  passing  through  the  preparatory 
stage.  They,  too,  were  members  of  the  great 
family  which  drew  language  from  the  Aryan 
source.  The  same  movement,  it  is  supposed,  in 
the  successive  outswarmings  of  that  family, 
deposited  in  one  peninsula  the  Italian  tribes,  and 
in  the  next  peninsula,  eastward,  the  tribes  of  the 
Hellenes.  Among  the  Italian  tribes  were  Latins, 
Umbrians,  Sabines,  Samnites,  etc.,  occupying  the 
middle  and  much  of  the  southern  parts  of  the 
peninsula,  while  a  mysterious  alien  people,  the 
Etruscans,  possessed  the  country  north  of  them, 
between  the  Arno  and  the  Tiber.  In  the  extreme 
south  were  remnants  of  a  primitive  race,  identical, 
perhaps,  with  the  Pelasgians  of  Greece,  and  Greek 
colonies  were  scattered  there,  around  the  coasts. 

From  the  Latins  sprang  the  Romans,  at  the 
beginning  of  their  separate  existence;  but  there 
seems  to  have  been  a  very  early  union  of  these 
Romans  of  the  primitive  tradition  with  a  Sabine 
community,  whereby  was  formed  the  Roman 
city-state  of  historical  times.  That  union  came 
about  through  the  settlement  of  the  two  com- 
munities, Latin  and  Sabine,  on  two  neighboring 
hills,  near  the  mouth  of  the  river  Tiber,  on  its 
southern  bank.  In  the  view  of  some  historians,  it 
is  the  geographical  position  of  those  hills,  hardly 
less  than  the  masterful  temper  and  capacity  of  the 


The  Founding  of  Rome  143 

race  seated  on  them,  which  determined  the  mar- 
velous career  of  the  city  founded  on  that  site. 
Says  Professor  Freeman:  "The  whole  history  of 
the  world  has  been  determined  by  the  geological 
fact  that,  at  a  point  a  little  below  the  junction  of 
the  Tiber  and  the  Anio,  the  isolated  hills  stand  _,     . 

'  The  site 

nearer  to  one  another  than  most  of  the  other  hills  of  Rome 
of  Latium.  On  a  site  marked  out  above  all  other 
sites  for  dominion,  the  center  of  Italy,  the  center 
of  Europe,  as  Europe  then  was,  a  site  at  the  junc- 
tion of  three  of  the  great  nations  of  Italy,  and 
which  had  the  great  river  as  its  highway  to  lands 
beyond  the  bounds  of  Italy,  stood  two  low  hills, 
the  hill  which  bore  the  name  of  Latin  Saturn,  and 
the  hill  at  the  meaning  of  whose  name  of  Palatine 
scholars  will  perhaps  guess  forever.  These  two 
hills,  occupied  by  men  of  two  of  the  nations  of 
Italy,  stood  so  near  to  one  another  that  a  strait 
choice  indeed  was  laid  on  those  who  dwelled  on 
them.  They  must  either  join  together  on  terms 
closer  than  those  which  commonly  united  Italian 
leagues,  or  they  must  live  a  life  of  border  warfare 
more  ceaseless,  more  bitter,  than  the  ordinary 
warfare  of  Italian  enemies.  Legend,  with  all  like- 
lihood, tells  us  that  warfare  was  tried;  history,  Freeman, 
with  all  certainty,  tells  us  that  the  final  choice  *£%££* 

was  union.     The  two  hills  were  fenced  with  a  Audiences, 

278 
single    wall;     the    men    who    dwelled    on    them 

changed  from  wholly  separate  communities  into 

tribes  of  a  single  city." 

The  followers  of  Romulus  occupied  the  Palatine 

Mount,   and   the   Sabines   were   settled   on   the 


144  From  David  to  Cyrus 

Quirinal.    At  subsequent  times,  the  Ccelian,  the 

Capitoline,  the  Aventine,  the  Esquiline  and  the 

The  seven     Viminal  hills  were  embraced  in  the  circumvalla- 

tiii«  tion,  and  the  city  on  the  seven  hills  thus  acquired 

that  name. 

If  modern  students  and  thinkers,  throwing 
light  on  the  puzzling  legends  and  traditions  of 
early  Rome  from  many  sources,  in  language  and 
archaeology,  have  construed  their  meaning  rightly, 
then  great  importance  attaches  to  those  first 
unions  or  incorporations  of  distinct  settlements  in 
the  forming  of  the  original  city-state.  For  it  was 
the  beginning  of  a  process  which  went  on  until  the 
whole  of  Latium,  and  then  the  whole  of  Italy,  and, 
finally,  the  whole  Mediterranean  world,  were 
TheRoman  joined  to  the  seven  hills  of  Rome.  "The  whole 
process  of     history  of  Rome  is  a  history  of  incorporation;" 

wcorpora-  ...  .  . 

tion  and  it  is  reasonable  to  believe  that  the  primal 

spring  of  Roman  greatness  is  found  in  that  early 
adoption  and  persistent  practice  of  the  policy  of 
political  absorption,  which  gave  conquest  a 
character  it  had  never  borne  before. 

At  the  same  time,  this  view  of  the  creation  of 
the  Roman  state  contributes  to  an  understanding 
of  its  early  constitutional  history.  It  supposes 
that  the  union  of  the  first  three  tribes  which 
coalesced — those  of  the  Palatine,  the  Quirinal  and 
Capitoline  (both  occupied  by  the  Sabines)  and  the 
Ccelian  hills — ended  the  process  of  incorporation 
tkeRoman  on  equal  terms.  These  formed  the  original 
patricians  Roman  people — the  "fathers,"  the  "patres," 
whose  descendants  appear  in  later  times  as  a  dis- 


Roman  Patricians  and  Plebs  145 

tinct  class  or  order,  the  "patricians" — holding 
and  struggling  to  maintain  exclusive  political 
rights,  and  exclusive  ownership  of  the  public 
domain,  the  "ager  publicus,"  which  became  a 
subject  of  bitter  contention  for  four  centuries. 
Around  these  heirs  of  the  "fathers"  of  Rome 
arose  another  class  of  Romans,  brought  into  the 
community  by  later  incorporations,  and  not  on 
equal  terms.  If  the  first  class  were  "fathers," 
these  were  children,  in  a  political  sense,  adopted 
into  the  Roman  family,  but  without  a  voice  in 
general  affairs,  or  a  share  in  the  public  lands,  or 
eligibility  to  the  higher  offices  of  the  state.  These 
were  the  plebs  (plebeians)  of  Rome,  whose  long  ?rig!??f 
struggle  with  the  patricians  for  political  and 
agrarian  rights  is  the  more  interesting  side  of 
Roman  history,  throughout  nearly  the  whole  of 
the  prosperous  age  of  the  republic. 

The  Phoenicians 

The  interval  of  independence  which  the  cities  of 
Phoenicia  had  enjoyed  for  a  few  hundred  years, 
after  the  crumbling,  in  the  eleventh  century  B.C., 
of  the  power  of  Egypt,  was  ended,  as  we  have 
seen,  by  the  Assyrian  conquests  of  the  eighth 
century,  and  they  were  never  again  politically 
free.  But  their  commerce  was  unfettered,  and,  n"th^6th 
apparently,  they  cared  little  for  any  freedom 
beyond  that.  For  a  time  in  this  period  the  trade 
of  the  Mediterranean  appears  to  have  been 
wholly  in  their  hands.  This  was  while  the  Greeks 
were  inactive,  even  in  their  own  seas,  and  before 


centuries 


146  From  David  to  Cyrus 

Carthage,  founded  in  the  ninth  century  B.  C.  by 
exiles  from  Tyre,  had  attained  much  power.  Of 
the  career  of  the  Carthaginians  prior  to  the  fifth 
century  nothing  really  is  known;  nor  is  there  any 
knowledge  in  detail  of  the  lines  and  methods  of 
Phoenician  trade.  It  is  only  clear,  as  a  general 
fact,  that  they  handled  a  wide  exchange  of  com- 
Phcemcian    modities  between  the  three  continents  that  touch 

commerce 

the  Mediterranean  Sea.  That  their  ships,  or 
those  of  the  Carthaginians,  made  voyages  to 
Britain,  and  brought  thence  the  tin  of  Cornwall, 
or  sailed  beyond  Britain  to  the  Baltic  for  amber, 
is  no  longer  much  believed.  Undoubtedly  the 
Phoenicians  and  the  Carthaginians  conducted  an 
important  trade  in  British  tin,  but  it  reached 
them,  more  probably,  by  overland  routes,  through 
Gaul  (modern  France),  which  were  opened  by 
native  traders  of  that  country  at  a  very  early  day. 
Similarly  the  amber  of  the  Baltic  was  brought  to 
the  Adriatic  and  the  Mediterranean  by  merchants 
who  traversed  the  rivers  and  roadways  of  the 
land,  not  the  paths  of  the  sea. 

The  bold  Phoenicians  and  Carthaginians  did, 

however,  sail  their  ships  out  of  the  Mediterranean 

into  the  Atlantic,  and  they  founded  settlements 

on  the  ocean  coasts,  both  in  Africa  and  Spain. 

.    .       The  modern  city  of  Cadiz  can  trace  its  parentage 

Antiquity  .    m      J  .  f 

of  Cadiz  to  a  Phoenician  or  Carthaginian  colony  of  such 
antiquity  that  (says  Mr.  Freeman,  the  historian) 
it  "has  kept  its  name  and  its  unbroken  position  as 
a  great  city  from  an  earlier  time  than  any  other 
city  in  Europe."     Southern  Spain  was  covered 


Phoenicians  and  Carthaginians  147 

with  Phoenician  and  Carthaginian  settlements,  and 
they  monopolized  its  mines,  which  were  a  great 
source  of  wealth.  The  dominion  of  Carthage  in 
north  Africa  was  extended,  at  some  quite  early 
day,  from  what  is  now  named  the  Gulf  of  Sidra 
(the  Great  Syrtis  of  the  ancients)  to  the  ocean  on  Cartha_ 
the  west.  In  that  Libyan  territory  it  claimed  ginian 
ultimately  three  hundred  tributary  cities,  some  of 
which,  such  as  Utica,  its  close  neighbor,  were 
Phoenician  settlements  older  than  itself. 

The  Phoenicians  were  extensive  manufacturers, 
as  well  as  merchants  and  carriers,  and  much  of 
what  they  bartered  with  other  peoples  was  the  Phoenician 
product  of  their  own  arts.    They  were  reputed  to  manufac- 
be  the  discoverers  of  glass-making;   their  bronze 
and  copper  work  was  famous;  they  had  no  rivals  Rawiinson, 
in  the  use  of  dyes,  especially  Tyrian  purple,  which  ch.  I0 
a   shell-fish   supplied.     For  a   long  period   they 
monopolized  the  copper  of  Cyprus — the  metal 
which  gave  that  island  its  name.     But  the  busi- 
ness which  the  Phoenicians  pursued  with  most 
activity  and  profit,  if  Greek  writers  are  believed, 
was  the  buying,  capturing,  stealing  and  selling  of 
slaves.      Wherever    men,    women    and    children 
could  be  bought  or  caught,  the  Phoenicians  are 
represented  to  have  been  alert  for  the  oppor- 
tunity;   and  markets  for  the  human  commodity 
were  always  to  be  found. 

India 

Our  narrative  has  not  yet  reached  a  time  from 
which  any  definite  record  of  any  people  (except 


mamsm 


148  From  David  to  Cyrus 

the  Chinese)  dwelling  outside  of  the  range  of  the 
records  of  Egypt,  Babylonia,  Assyria,  Judea,  or 
Greece,  has  come  to  light. 

India  still  tells  nothing  of  her  past,  except  by 
inference  from  a  sacred  literature  that  was  put 
into  writing  at  a  later  time;  but  some  inferences 
are  drawn  from  that  source  which  have  almost  the 
substance  of  fact.  One  such  reveals  a  great 
change  from  the  religious  ideas  and  from  the  social 
organization  represented  in  the  Rig-veda,  and 
shows  it  to  have  become  complete  within  the 
period  of  our  present  survey.  This  change  had 
Evolution  produced  from  the  early  simpler  Vedic  worship  an 
of  Brah-  elaborated  religion  known  as  Brahmanism,  and 
produced,  at  the  same  time,  the  paralyzing  social 
institution  of  caste.  The  religious  system  of 
Brahmanism  was  polytheistic,  but  it  introduced 
the  trinitarian  conception  of  one  supreme  deity 
existing  in  three  persons,  or  manifestations, 
Brahma,  Vishnu,  and  Siva, — the  first  creative  in 
his  functions,  the  second  protective  or  preserva- 
tive, the  third  destructive  and  reproductive.  An 
elaboration  of  priestly  service  in  the  Brahmanic 
worship  led  to  claims  of  superiority  in  the  priest- 
hood, going  beyond  any  found  elsewhere  in  the 
world.  The  priests,  called  "brahmans"  (which  is 
said  to  have  signified  originally  no  more  than 
"singers  of  sacred  songs"),  came  to  be  regarded 
not  only  as  a  class  apart,  but  as  men  of  a  different 
mould  from  their  fellows — a  caste.  Caste  has 
been  defined  as  "rank  with  impassable  bounda- 
ries, admitting  no  one  not  born  within  them." 


Origin  of 
caste 


castes 


India  and  China  149 

It  exists  rigidly  in  India  alone,  and  it  was  created 
there  undoubtedly  by  the  Brahmanic  priests.  To 
establish  the  distinction  of  caste  for  themselves 
they  must  have  given  religious  encouragement  to 
the  caste-idea  of  rank,  which  divided  Indian 
society  at  last  into  what  seem  to  be  regarded  as 
four  species  of  human  beings,  namely:  (1)  Brah- 
mans,  or  the  learned;  (2)  Kshattryas,  or  princes 
and  warriors;  (3)  Vaisyas,  or  the  common  people  The  four 
of  the  ruling  race;  (4)  Sudras,  or  the  subjugated 
aboriginals  of  the  country,  practically  enslaved. 
The  caste-organization  of  society  and  life  in 
India  goes  back  to  a  very  early  day,  and  probably 
it  was  formed,  or  taking  form,  along  with  the 
Brahmanic  religion,  in  the  period  now  under  sur- 
vey. Inferentially  from  the  sacred  books  of  the 
Hindus,  some  glimpses  of  the  process  of  these 
social  and  religious  developments  are  obtained; 
otherwise  Indian  history  preceding  the  sixth 
century  before  Christ,  when  Buddhism  arose,  is 
almost  a  blank. 


China 

The  native  historians  of  China  represent  its 
condition  in  this  period  to  have  been  one  of  great 
general  disorder  in  every  part  of  the  land.  The 
authority  exercised  by  the  early  sovereigns  of  the 
Chow  dynasty  had  been  lost;  the  people  were 
oppressed  by  their  princes  of  all  ranks;  fraud, 
violence  and  licentiousness  were  increasing  every- 
where, and  society  was  vitiated  throughout. 


CHAPTER  IV 


FROM   THE   ADVENT    OF    CYRUS 
THE  AGE  OF  XERXES 


TO 


Notable 
marks  on 
the  period 


(B.  C.  558  to  480) 
The  Period:  Its  two  notable  marks. — Trial  of  racial  strength  and  character 
between  Asiatic  and  European  branches  of  the  Aryan-tongued  peoples. — 
Religious  movements  in  the  Asiatic  world.  Ancient  Persia:  The  nationality 
of  Cyrus  the  Great,  a  problem. — Primitive  Persia  and  the  Persians. — 
Xenophon's  account  of  Persian  education  of  the  young. — The  Avesta. — 
Zoroaster.  Early  Religious  Reformations  in  the  East:  Zoroaster's  reform  of 
the  primitive  religion  of  the  Aryas.-^-Gotama,  tile  Buddha,  and  Buddhism. 
— Teachings  of  Lao-tsze  and  Confucius.  The  Persian  Empire:  Overthrow  of 
the  Median  empire  by  Cyrus. — His  conquest  of  Lydia. — Crcesus,  his  wealth 
and  his  downfall. — Subjugation  of  Asia  Minor. — Submission  of  Babylon. — 
Restoration  of  captive  Jews  to  Jerusalem  by  Cyrus. — The  empire  left  by 
Cyrus. — Conquest  of  Egypt  by  Cambyses. — Reorganization  of  the  empire  by 
Darius. — His  invasion  of  Europe. — His  pursuit  of  the  Scythians  beyond  the 
Danube. — Submission  of  Thrace  and  Macedonia  to  the  Persian. — Peril  of  the 
Greek  states.  The  Greeks:  Brief  experience  of  tyranny  at  Athens. — Pisis- 
tratus  and  his  sons. — The  democratic  constitution  of  Cleisthenes.  Persian 
Invasions  of  Greece:  Athens  sends  help  against  Persia  to  Ionian  cities  in  Asia 
Minor. — Wrath  of  King  Darius. — His  great  expedition  sent  into  Greece. — 
Its  defeat  at  Marathon. — Second  Persian  invasion  by  Xerxes. — Leonidas  and 
his  Spartans  at  Thermopylae. — Athens  in  ruins. — Destruction  of  the  Persian 
fleet  at  Salamis. — Disastrous  end  of  the  Persian  invasion.  The  Romans: 
The  Romans  under  their  kings. — Aristocratic  constitution  of  the  early 
Roman  Republic. — Formation  of  the  democratic  commonwealth. 

The  period  now  approached  bears  two  notable 
marks,  each  of  which  may  have  more  significance 
than  we  have  knowledge  to  understand.  One  is 
made  by  the  decisive  trial  of  racial  strength  and 
character,  between  Asiatic  and  European 
branches  of  the  Aryan-tongued  peoples,  which 
took  place  in  the  wars  of  the  Persians  with  the 
Greeks,  and  which  closed,  practically,  the  brief 
career  of  the  former  as  a  dominating  and  civiliz- 
ing power.  The  other  mark  on  the  period  is  from 
three  wonderful  movements  of  religious  reform 
that  occurred  in  the  Asiatic  world  at  nearly  the 
same  time,  and  the  effects  of  which  are  experi- 

150 


Cyrus  and  the  Persian  People  151 

enced  profoundly  by  a  vast  majority  of  the  human 
race  to  this  day. 

The  Ancient  Persians  and  their  country 

In  the  early  years  of  the  career  of  Cyrus  the 
Great  he  styled  himself  and  his  ancestors  kings  of 
Anzan,  or  Anshan,  which  is  found  to  have  been 
the  native  name  of  Elam:  later  he  assumed  the  Cyrus  the 
title  of  king  of  Persia.  These  are  facts  brought  to 
light  by  the  discovery  of  his  own  inscriptions,  in 
Babylonia,  a  few  years  ago,  and  they  require 
many  notions  of  Cyrus,  received  from  Greek 
writers  of  Persian  history,  to  be  revised.  Was  he 
or  was  he  not  of  Persian  birth  or  blood,  as  had 
seemed  formerly  to  be  a  matter  of  course  ?  If  not,  Persian/ 
why  did  he  so  identify  himself  with  that  small 
nation,  among  the  many  of  greater  power  and 
importance  that  came  under  his  rule?  Why  and 
how  did  Persia  become  the  very  center  and  seat  of 
the  great  sovereignty  he  created?  These  are 
problems  that  remain  for  the  archaeologists  of  the 
future  to  solve. 

The  country  of  the  ancient  Persians,  on  the 
gulf  which  bears  their  name,  embracing  what  is 
now  the  province  of  Farsistan,  lay  close  to  Elam, 
southeastwardly,  beyond  the  mountains  of  the 
Zagros  range.  Its  tribes  are  supposed  to  have 
become  united  in  a  national  monarchy  not  much  pr;m;tive 
before  the  time  of  the  Median  overthrow  of  Pcrsia 
Assyria,  in  which  they  probably  took  part,  along 
with  other  Iranian  kinspeople  of  the  Medes. 
Their  original  territory  was  not  large  and  their 


152 


From  Cyrus  to  Xerxes 


Primitive 

Persian 

character 


Persian 
education 
of  the 
young 


Xenophon, 
The  Cyro- 
pa'dia. 
bk.  I,  ch.  ii 


number  not  great;  but  they  were  evidently  a 
strong  race,  in  mind  and  body, — well-trained  in 
both.  The  Greeks  believed  them  to  have  been, 
before  power  and  wealth  corrupted  them,  a 
nation  resembling  their  own  Spartans,  in  integrity 
of  character  and  simplicity  and  discipline  of  life. 
Xenophon,  who  was  in  their  country  for  a  long 
time,  in  the  age  of  their  national  decay,  and  who 
was  well  acquainted  with  their  own  beliefs  con- 
cerning that  primitive  time,  gives  a  fascinating 
account  of  their  system  of  education  for  the 
young.  It  may  never  have  been  realized,  but  it 
indicates  high  qualities,  even  as  an  ideal,  if  no 
more.  Of  the  Persian  public  schools,  which  he 
describes,  Xenophon  says:  "The  boys  attending 
the  public  schools  pass  their  time  in  learning 
justice;  and  say  that  they  go  for  this  purpose,  as 
those  with  us  say  who  go  to  learn  to  read." 
"They  also,"  adds  Xenophon,  "teach  the  boys 
self-control;  and  it  contributes  much  towards 
their  learning  to  control  themselves,  that  they 
see  every  day  their  elders  behaving  themselves 
with  discretion.  They  teach  them  also  to  obey 
their  officers;  and  it  contributes  much  to  this 
end,  that  they  see  their  elders  constantly  obedient 
to  their  officers.  They  teach  them  temperance 
with  respect  to  eating  and  drinking;  and  it  con- 
tributes much  to  this  end,  that  they  see  that  their 
elders  do  not  quit  their  stations  to  satisfy  their 
appetites  until  their  officers  dismiss  them."  But 
all  this  was  of  the  past;  a  sad  degeneration  was 
found  by  Xenophon  in  his  own  day. 


Zoroaster  153 

Until  now,  Medes  and  Persians,  dwellers  in 
Iran,  speaking  languages  of  the  Aryan  structure, 
had  been  touched  by  the  light  of  history  only 
because  they  came  sometimes  within  the  range  of 
the  records  of  Assyria  and  Babylonia.  Behind 
and  beyond  those,  their  past  has  not  yet  been 
found  open  to  the  least  exploration,  otherwise 
than  by  guess  and  inference  from  their  sacred 
writings,  which  come  to  us  from  a  later  day.  The 
writings  in  question,  gathered  in  the  books  of  the 
Avesta,  or  Zendavesta,  have  been  mentioned  as  TheAvesta 
the  product  of  a  reform  of  the  primitive  religion 
of  the  Aryas,  brought  about  by  Zarathushtra 
(called  Zoroaster),  probably  in  the  sixth  century 
before  Christ.  Among  the  Parsis  of  India  the 
Zoroastrian  religion,  sometimes  named  Maz- 
deism,  survives  to  the  present  time. 

Religious  reformations  of  the  Sixth  Century  before  Christ 

As  reformed  by  Zoroaster,  the  religion  of  the 
Iranians  became,  in  a  certain  sense,  a  monothe- 
istic religion,  since  it  placed  one  supreme  Lord, 
Ahura-mazda,  creator  of  man  and  giver  of  all 
good  to  him,  above  other  beings  whom  it  recog-  ™eionof 
nized  as  divine.  It  retained  in  association  with  Zoroaster 
Ahura-mazda  six  other  immortal  spirits;  but 
they  were  his  ministers,  he  was  their  Lord.  Its 
conception  of  all  these  divinities  was  as  spiritual 
as  the  Hebrew  conception  of  Jehovah;  it  repre- 
sented them  in  no  idolatrous  form.  But  omnipo- 
tence was  not  included  among  the  attributes  of 


154 


Jackson, 
Zoroaster 


Nearly- 
contempo- 
rary 
teachers 


From  Cyrus  to  Xerxes 

the  Zoroastrian  Lord.  He  was  only  the  Great 
Spirit  of  Good  in  the  universe,  contending  with 
and  struggling  against  an  almost  or  quite  equal 
Spirit  of  Evil,  Anro-mainyus,  who  strove  unceas- 
ingly to  thwart  his  benevolent  designs  for  man- 
kind. The  likeness  of  Anro-mainyus  to  the 
Satan  or  Devil  of  Christian  theology  is  too  obvi- 
ous to  escape  remark,  and  the  fact  that  Anro- 
mainyus  was  supposed  to  be  served  and  assisted 
in  his  warfare  with  Ahura-mazda  by  malignant 
under-spirits  called  "dsevas"  is  suggestive  of 
further  thought. 

The  religious  reformation  wrought  in  the 
Iranian  region  by  Zoroaster  appears  to  have  been 
nearly  simultaneous  with  two  other  more  remark- 
able introductions  of  new  religious  feeling  and 
new  thought  in  the  Asiatic  world.  It  is  a  striking 
fact,  and  one  suggestive  of  more  meaning  than 
we  have  knowledge  to  give  to  it,  that  Gotama  the 
Buddha,  Confucius  and  Lao-tsze  arose  within  the 
same  century,  if  the  conclusions  of  the  best 
scholarship  of  the  present  day  are  correct.  That 
Iran,  India,  and  China,  were  all,  in  that  same 
sixth  century  before  Christ,  prepared  for  the 
acceptance  of  the  moral  and  spiritual  revelations 
which  these  great  teachers  brought  to  them, 
seems  to  signify  something  in  the  general  circum- 
stances and  conditions  of  that  age  in  the  orient 
which  we  do  not  know. 

Gotama,  called  the  Buddha,  meaning  "the 
enlightened,"  was  probably  born  at  some  time  in 
the  first  half  of  the  sixth  century  before  Christ. 


GOTAMA    THE    BuDDHA  1 55 

His  birthplace  was  near  the  city  of  Kapila-vastu, 
the  ruins  of  which,  in  Nepal  Terai,  bordering  on 
the  modern  province  of  Oudh,  in  India,  were  dis- 
covered a  few  years  ago,  and  identified  by  an 
inscribed  pillar,  erected  by  a  reverent  emperor, 
Asoka,  in  the  third  century  B.  C.    The  father  of 
Gotama  was  the  rajah  of  a  small  state,  and  the  Gotama 
future  founder  of  the  new  religion  lived  the  life  of  theBuddha 
a  prince  until  his  thirtieth  year.    Then,  though 
married,  and  the  father  of  an  infant  son,  he  left 
his  home,  to  become,  says  Professor  Rhys  Davids, 
"a  homeless  wanderer,  and  to  spend  his  life,  first  His  life 
in  thinking  out  for  himself  the  deepest  problems 
of  experience,  and  then  in  spreading  abroad  to 
others  the  good  tidings  of  the  salvation  which  he 
deemed  himself  to  have  discovered."     He  was 
oppressed  with  a  sense  of  the  miseries  and  suffer- 
ings that  seemed  to  be  inherent  in  human  life;   a 
sense  made  more  oppressive  by  the  Brahmanic 
belief  in  successive  re-births  after  death,  continu- 
ing the  same  life  in  new  states.    The  salvation  he 
sought  and  believed  that  he  found  was  escape  H;ssearch 
from  that  revolving  "wheel  of  life."    His  revela-  for  salva- 
tion was  the  discovery,  as  he  taught,  that  right- 
eousness in  life, — "right  views,"  "right  aspira- 
tions," "right  speech,"  "right  conduct,"  "right 
livelihood,"  "right  effort,"  "right  mindfulness,"  His 
and   "right  meditation"    ("the  noble  eightfold  and  reveia- 
path"), — was  the  means  of  that  escape;  that  the  tlon 
escape  was  its  reward.     "The  good  Buddhist,"  j*hjr? 
says  Professor  Rhys  Davids,  "cannot  seek  for  any  Buddhism, 
salvation  which  he  is  himself  to  enjoy  in  any  97' I3 


1 56 


From  Cyrus  to  Xerxes 


Nirvana 

and 

Arahatship 


Rhys 
Davids, 
Buddhism, 
131- 


Oldenburg, 

Ancient 

India 


future  world.  The  result  of  his  good  actions,  the 
fruit  of  his  Karma,  as  the  Buddhists  would  call  it, 
will  survive  when  he  is  dead,  and  advance  the 
happiness  of  some  other  beings,  who  will  have  no 
conscious  identity  with  himself.  But,  so  far  as  he 
can  reach  salvation,  he  must  enjoy  it  in  this 
present  life.  The  Buddhist  books  are  constantly 
insisting  upon  the  foolishness  of  wasting  time 
(when  there  is  so  much  to  do,  both  for  one's  self 
and  for  others)  in  any  hankering  after  a  supposed 
happiness  of  heaven.  And  salvation  here  is  pre- 
cisely the  being  delivered  from  delusions  with 
regard  to  individuality,  in  which  the  ordinary 
unconverted  man  is  still  entangled.  When  the 
mind  has  become  clear  from  these  delusions,  a 
new  and  wider,  brighter  world  reveals  itself  to 
him  who  has  'entered  upon  the  Path.'  And  the 
Buddhist  books  are  full  of  descriptions  of  the 
means  which  must  be  adopted,  first  to  get  rid  of 
the  delusions,  and  secondly  to  gain  the  full 
heights  of  the  peaceful  city  of  Nirvana,  in  which 
he  who  is  free  from  these  delusions  lives  and 
moves  and  has  his  being."  The  state  so  attained 
is  "Arahatship,"  the  Buddhist  ideal  of  life. 

The  Buddha  sent  forth  his  disciples  to  preach 
his  message  of  salvation  to  all  mankind,  and  dur- 
ing the  next  few  centuries  Buddhism  was  spread, 
not  only  through  India  and  Ceylon,  but  so  widely 
in  eastern  Asia  that  it  became,  as  it  is  to-day,  the 
religion  of  more  than  half  of  all  the  people  in  the 
world.  It  was  spread,  too,  by  persuasion  entirely, 
never  by  the  sword,  and  no  instance  of  the  perse- 


Lao-tsze 


Lao-tsze  and  Confucius  157 

cution  of  another  faith  is  laid  to  its  charge.  It  did 
not  drive  Brahmanism  out  of  India,  but  the  two 
religions  existed  together  for  more  than  a  thou- 
sand years. 

In  China,  as  in  Iran  and  India,  the  matters  of 
chief  importance  that  appear  in  what  is  known  of 
this  period  are  in  the  religious  and  moral  sphere. 
Two  contemporary  teachers,  Lao-tsze  and  Con- 
fucius (or  K'ung-foo-tsze,  meaning  the  master 
K'ung),  who  arose  in  the  sixth  century  B.  C, 
impressed  an  influence  on  the  Chinese  mind 
which  has  strangely  affected  the  whole  national 
character  and  life.  In  the  case  of  Lao-tsze,  who 
was  the  elder  of  the  two  by  half  a  century,  the 
influence  issued  long  after  his  death  in  an  extraor- 
dinary perversion,  it  is  said,  of  what  he  taught. 
He  was  a  mystical  philosopher  and  moralist, 
whose  writings,  so  far  as  western  students  of  the 
present  day  are  able  to  understand  them,  appear 
to  have  contained  some  very  good  thoughts, 
obscurely  expressed.  But  in  later  times  they 
were  so  construed  as  to  become  the  basis  of 
authority  for  a  most  repulsive  system  of  religious 
belief,  known  as  Taoism,  in  which  demons,  malig- 
nant spirits  and  purgatorial  tortures  for  the  dead 
afford  abundant  occupation  for  Taoist  priests  or 
monks,  who  supply  charms  and  perform  magical 
and  propitiatory  rites. 

In  the  early  religious  faith  of  the  Chinese  there 
is  no  appearance  of  a  priesthood,  and  the  only 
public  worship  was  in  official  ceremonies  per- 
formed at  certain  seasons  by  the  emperor,  as  the 


Taoism 


158  From  Cyrus  to  Xerxes 

head  of  the  state.  Apparently  the  primitive 
belief  was  strictly  monotheistic;  but  there  grew 
up  in  it  a  recognition  of  celestial  and  terrestrial 
spirits,  which  made  way  for  the  corruption  of 
Taoism  to  creep  in.  In  addition  to  this  there  was 
developed,  out  of  the  sentiment  of  filial  piety,  a 
system  of  ancestor-worship,  which  has  prevailed 
from  very  ancient  times. 

Prayers  and  offerings  to  ancestral  spirits  were 
tolerated,   at  least,  by  Confucius,  whose  whole 
religious  attitude  was  one  of  tolerance,  attempt- 
ing no  doctrinal  or  ceremonial  reforms.    His  mis- 
Confucius     sion  was  [n  tiie  moral  domain,  having  reference 

a  mora'  1-1  i-i 

teacher        to  prudent  and  right  conduct  in  the  present  life. 

Of  all  the  teachers  who  have  greatly  influenced 
mankind  he  was  the  most  conservative,  and  no 
other  has  ever  stamped  his  own  personal  traits  on 
a  race  as  Confucius  stamped  his  conservatism  on 
the  character  of  the  Chinese.  Professor  Douglas 
calls  the  doctrines  of  Confucius  atheistic,  saying: 
"He  never  in  any  way  denied  the  existence  of 
Shang-te  [the  principal  deity  of  the  early  Chinese], 
but  he  ignored  him.  His  concern  was  with  man  as 
a  member  of  society,  and  the  object  of  his  teach- 
ing was  to  lead  him  into  those  paths  of  rectitude 
Douglas,  which  might  best  contribute  to  his  own  happiness, 
China,  306  anci  t]ie  Well-being  of  that  community  of  which  he 
formed  a  part.  Man,  he  held,  was  born  good,  and 
was  endowed  with  qualities  which,  when  culti- 
vated and  improved  by  watchfulness  and  self- 
restraint,  might  enable  him  to  acquire  godlike 
wisdom  and  become  'the  equal  of  heaven.' " 


Cyrus  and  Crcesus  159 

Conquests  of  Cyrus 

Cyrus  the  Great  began  his  career  of  conquest 
by  overthrowing  the  Median  empire,  about  558 
B.  C.  Some  ten  or  eleven  years  then  appear  to 
have  passed,  during  which  he  was  busy,  no  doubt, 
in  the  consolidating  of  his  power  in  Iran,  before  Maspero, 
his  further  conquests  were  begun.  According  to  ofet}ieas 
Greek  accounts,  he  was  started  on  that  course  of  Empires, 

ch.  vi 

wide  conquest  by  a  rash  attack,  made  by  Crcesus, 
an  ambitious  Lydian  king. 

The  kingdom  of  Lydia  (called  Mseonia  in  the 
Homeric  poems),  in  western  Asia  Minor,  though 
one  of  the  early  centers  of  a  rising  civilization  in 
that  part  of  the  world,  had  attained  no  great 
importance  until  the  seventh  century  B.  C. 
According  to  its  traditions,  two  long-lasting 
dynasties  of  kings  had  reigned  previously  to  that 
time,  one  known  to  the  Greeks  as  the  Attyadse,  kingdom  of 
the  other  as  the  Heracleidae,  both  claiming  Lydia 
descent  from  the  gods.  But  the  power  of  the 
monarchy  had  been  too  slight  to  prevent  Greek 
colonists  from  taking  possession  of  its  whole 
coast,  cutting  it  off  from  the  sea  and  controlling 
the  mouth  of  the  river  Hermus,  on  which  Sardis, 
its  capital,  was  built.  About  689  B.  C,  however, 
the  Lydian  throne  was  acquired  by  a  third  family, 
the  Mermnadse,  which  raised  it  within  the  follow- 
ing century  to  great  power.  Of  the  manner  in 
which  Gyges,  the  founder  of  this  dynasty, 
secured  the  throne,  varying  romantic  legends  G 
were  handed  down,  showing  only  that  a  palace  b.c.68q(?) 
revolution  of  some  nature  delivered  the  reins  of 


i6o 


From  Cyrus  to  Xerxes 


(See  page 
119) 


Croesus, 
B.  C.  563- 

549  (?) 


His  wealth 

and 

prosperity 


government  to  a  strong  man.  Though  Gyges  had 
to  contend  with  the  devastating  invasion  of  the 
Cimmerians,  who  overran  Phrygia,  he  began 
undertakings  of  conquest,  especially  against  the 
cities  of  the  intruding  Greeks  on  the  Lydian 
coast.  His  ambitious  projects  were  pursued  by 
his  successors,  until  Croesus,  the  last  of  the  line, 
became  master  of  the  whole  of  Asia  Minor,  to  the 
Halys, — the  Kizil  Armak  of  the  modern  map. 
That  stream  was  the  boundary  between  Lydian 
and  Median  dominions,  determined  by  treaty  in 
610,  after  a  hard  fought  war  which  checked  the 
westward  advance  of  the  Medes.  A  friendly 
alliance  between  the  two  monarchies  was  the 
outcome  of  this  war. 

Croesus,  who  came  to  the  Lydian  throne  in  563 
B.  C,  was  reputed  among  the  Greeks  to  be  the 
richest  prince  of  his  day, — so  much  so  that  they 
made  his  name  a  synonym  of  wealth,  and  its  use 
in  that  sense  has  been  passed  on  to  the  present 
day.  Croesus  completed  the  subjugation  of  the 
Greek  cities  on  the  coast,  partly  by  force  of  arms, 
partly  by  flattering  or  corrupting  gifts.  He  culti- 
vated the  favor  of  the  oracles  in  Greece,  and  won 
the  admiration  of  the  Greek  people  by  many 
tactful  arts.  His  reign  was  one  of  remarkable 
prosperity  and  good  fortune  until  he  rashly 
challenged  Cyrus,  the  new  master  of  the  domin- 
ion of  the  Medes,  to  a  trial  of  war.  His  downfall, 
which  ensued,  gave  so  striking  an  illustration  of 
the  uncertainties  of  fortune  that  it  has  pointed 
the  moral  for  all  times  since. 


Cyrus  and  the  Exiled  Jews  161 

Croesus  and  his  kingdom  went  down  before  the 
onset  of  Cyrus  in  549  or  547  B.  C.    The  whole  of  Conquest 
Asia  Minor,   including  the  Greek  cities  on  the  ofLydia.ai! 

7  °  t  Asia  Minor 

coast,  and  the  islands  of  Chios  and  Lesbos,  were  and  Baby- 
soon  afterward  made  submissive  to  the  same  new  Cyrus/ 
lord.     It  was  ten  years  later  that  Babylonia,  the  B.  c. 

1  r     1  1  A    •         S49(?)-S33 

last  of  the  three  greater  powers  in  western  Asia, 
was  overcome,  after  how  much  of  struggle  is  not 
clear.  Such  resistance  as  Cyrus  encountered  in 
Babylonia  was  led,  not  by  Nabonidus,  but  by 
Belshazzar,  his  son.  The  conqueror  entered 
Babylon  in  538  B.  C. 

The  Jewish  Restoration  by  Cyrus 

The  act  which  gave  Cyrus  his  widest  ultimate 
fame  was  the  liberation  of  the  captive  Jews  in 
Babylonia,  permitting  them  to  return  to  Jerusa- 
lem, to  rebuild  their  temple,  and  to  resume  their 
national  life.    This  he  did  in  the  year  of  his  entry 
into  Babylon,  B.  C.  538.     So  long  as  the  new 
master  of  Babylon  was  supposed  to  be  a  strict  Renan, 
Zoroastrian  in  his  religious  belief,  he  was  thought  ihlstpf0pl 
to  have  been  prompted  to  this  act  of  grace  by  of  Israel, 
sympathy  with  the  Hebrews  in  their  monotheistic  x;;i 
faith.     But  Cyrus  is  now  known,  from  his  own 
inscriptions,  to  have  been  as  reverent  towards  the 
Bel-Marduk  of  Babylon  as  towards  the  Jehovah 
of  Jerusalem,    and   he  was   doubtless   a   willing 
worshiper  of  all  the  many  gods  whom  his  various 
subjects  revered.     It  is  more  than  probable  that  The  motive 
the  motive  of  his  liberation  of  the  Jewish  exiles  °f  Cyrus 
was  purely  one  of  statesmanship,  and  that  he 


1 62  From  Cyrus  to  Xerxes 

dealt  with  other  exiled  peoples  in  the  same  way. 
Every  community  thus  restored  would  see  its 
own  greatest  interest  in  fidelity  to  the  liberating 
king.  That  Cyrus  was  a  statesman  as  well  as  a 
conquering  warrior  is  shown  by  the  substantiality 
of  the  great  empire  that  he  gathered  under  his 
„.  strong  hand.    He  must  have  dealt  wisely  with  the 

His  states-  °  ... 

manship  many  diverse  peoples  that  he  ruled;  for  he  seems 
to  have  been  less  troubled  with  revolt  than  previ- 
ous makers  of  empire  had  been.  The  memory 
that  he  left  behind  him  among  his  subjects,  if 

(See  page  Xenophon  speaks  truly  of  it,  can  leave  no  doubt 
on  this  point. 

Not  all  the  Jewish  exiles  in  Babylon  accepted 
the  freedom  given  them  by  Cyrus  to  return  to 
their  own  land.  Many  who  were  prosperous  in 
their  alien  home  preferred  to  remain,  founding  a 

The  community  of  "Babylonian  Jews"  which  became 

Babyioman  jarge  an£  }mp0rtant  jn  after  times.    Of  those  who 

returned  to  Jerusalem  and  Judah,  "the  whole 
congregation  together  was  forty  and  two  thou- 
sand three  hundred  and  threescore,  besides  their 
servants  and  maids,  of  whom  there  were  seven 
thousand  three  hundred  thirty  and  seven."  They 
were  given  the  gold  and  silver  vessels  of  the 
temple,  which  Nebuchadnezzar  had  taken  away 
Ezra, n, 64-  and  put  into  the  house  of  his  own  gods;  and  "all 
65,  and  i,  6.  ^^y  that  were  about  them  strengthened  their 

hands  with  vessels  of  silver,  with  gold,  with 
goods,  and  with  beasts,  and  with  precious  things." 
And  so,  after  forty-nine  years  of  captivity,  they 
came  back  to  Jerusalem,  under  the  lead  of  Zerub- 


Emnity  Between  Jews  163 

babel,  a  scion  of  their  royal  house,  and  of  Jeshua, 
their  high  priest,  and  began  the  rebuilding  of  the 
temple  and  of  homes  for  themselves. 

The  returned  exiles  found  themselves  sur* 
rounded  by  a  population  which  they  hated  and 
scorned.  Jews  who  had  not  shared  the  exile,  and 
strange  intruders  from  surrounding  countries, 
with  whom  these  Jews  had  mixed  and  married, 
were  equally  obnoxious  to  the  faithful  ones,  who 
believed  that  the  rebuilding  of  their  nation  was 
committed  to  them  alone.  They  held  themselves  Jerusalem 
sternly  aloof  from  their  neighbors;  would  have  Samaria 
no  friendship  with  Samaria;  rejected  offers  of 
union  and  help  in  the  restoration  of  the  temple,  Ezra>  w> 
saying  to  them  who  came  with  such  overtures: 
"Ye  have  nothing  to  do  with  us  to  build  an  house 
unto  our  God."  Enmity  between  them  and  all 
their  neighbors  was  the  natural  consequence.  The 
latter  "troubled  them  in  building,"  with  such 
effect  that  the  work  on  the  temple  was  not 
finished  until  twenty-two  years  had  gone  by. 

For  almost  a  century  the  results  of  the  restora- 
tion which  Cyrus  had  permitted  were  hanging  in 
great  doubt.  The  small  colony  at  Jerusalem 
suffered  much,  gained  little  prosperity,  was  losing 
hope,  and  religious  infidelities  were  creeping  in. 
Then,  in  458  B.  C,  an  important  reinforcement  to 
it  came  from  the  stronger  Jewish  community  at 
Babvlon.     A   second   movement  of  return  was  The  second 

.  movement 

brought  about  by  "  Ezra  the  priest,  the  scribe  of  of  return 
the  law,"  who  led  it,  and  who  brought  with  him  a     '    ' 45  ' 
decree   from   Artaxerxes,    the   king,   giving   him 


164  Froai  Cyrus  to  Xerxes 

authority  to  "set  magistrates  and  judges"  and  to 

Ezra,  vii.      enforce,  said  the  decree,  "the  law  of  thy  God,  and 

nT  andh     ^e    ^aw   °^   t^ie    king-"     Thirteen    years    later, 

Nehemiah,  who  had  been  the  cupbearer  and  a 

favorite    of    Artaxerxes,    was    sent    as    Persian 

governor  to  Judea,  and  joined  Ezra  in  measures 

which   revived   the  religious   spirit  of  the  com- 

Weiihausen  munity,  improved  its  circumstances  and  invigor- 

sketck  of      atecj  jts  |jre>     Judaism,  as  a  racial  religious  Organ- 
za History  J  '  . 

of  Israel       ization,    with    the    center    of    its    hierarchy    at 
X  x "  a  '    Jerusalem,  was  now  rising  into  the  place  of  the 
Jewish  nation. 

The  Persian  Empire 

The  empire  left  by  Cyrus  to  his  son  Cambyses, 
in  529  B.  C,  when  he  died,  extended  from  the 
JEgean  and  the  Mediterranean  to  the  Indus,  and 
from  the  Persian  Gulf  and  the  borders  of  Egypt 
to  the  river  Jaxartes  and  the  Caspian  and  Black 
seas.  The  conquest  of  Egypt  had  been  included 
in  his  plans,  but  was  not  accomplished  when  he 
died.  Cambyses,  after  dealing  with  some  out- 
breaks of  revolt  that  occurred  on  his  accession, 
made  extensive  preparations  for  an  invasion  of 
the  land  of  the  Nile.  They  were  not  concluded 
until  the  fifth  year  of  his  reign,  when  the  move- 
ment began.  For  cooperation  with  his  army  he 
was  supplied  with  a  formidable  fleet  by  the 
Phoenicians,  by  the  Greek  cities  of  his  father's 
conquest  in  Asia  Minor  and  the  JEgean,  and  by 
the  Cyprians,  whose  allegiance  to  the  new  lords  of 
the  east  was  now  volunteered.    The  attack  was 


Egypt  Subjugated  165 

irresistible,  and  Egypt  succumbed.  The  native  Con  uest 
king,  Amasis  (an  usurper,  who  had  taken  the  of  Egypt. 
crown  from  Hophra  in  570  B.  C),  was  dethroned, 
and  the  oldest  monarchy  on  the  earth  was  ruled 
again  by  kings  and  courts  of  foreign  race.  An 
attempt  by  Cambyses  to  subjugate  the  Ethio- 
pians in  the  south  is  said  by  Herodotus  to  have 
failed;  but  the  statement  is  considered  open  to 
doubt.  So,  too,  is  a  Greek  story  of  the  loss  of 
50,000  of  his  army  in  a  reckless  expedition  to  the 
oasis  of  Ammon,  in  the  Libyan  desert. 

Much  of  what  later  Greek  writers  have  told  of 
mad  and  wicked  conduct  on  the  part  of  Cambyses  Cambyses 
in  Egypt  is  discredited  by  the  historical  criticism 
of  modern   times.     It  can   hardly  be   doubted, 
however,  that  he  was  a  youth  of  ungovernable 
passion,  of  little  wisdom  and  no  moral  restraint. 
Suspicious    of    his    brother    Bardes    or    Bardya 
(called  Smerdes  by  the  Greeks),  he  caused  him  to 
be   murdered   secretly,   and   the   secrecy  of  the 
crime  was  fatal  to  himself.     For  the  murdered 
Bardes    was    personated     successfully    by    one 
Gaumata,    who    resembled    him    closely,    and    a 
rebellion,  started  and  led  as  though  by  him,  in 
Persia  and  Media,  had  instant  success.    Camby- 
ses, still  lingering  in  Egypt,  set  out  in  great  haste 
to    confront   the    impostor,    but    received    some 
accidental  hurt  on  the  way,  which  caused  his  Animpos- 
death.    The  false  Bardes  was  crowned  at  Pasar-  ^Z^ 
gadae,  the  ancient  Persian  capital,  in  the  summer  throne. 
of  522  B.  C,  and  reigned  seven  months,  exercis-         ' 5 
ing,  apparently,  full  sway.    Then  he  was  surprised 


1 66  From  Cyrus  to  Xerxes 

in  his  Median  citadel  by  a  small  band  of  Persian 

Darius        nobles,  who  had  detected  his  imposture,  and  was 

chosen  king  s}am#     Darius,  son  of  Hystaspes,  the  satrap  of 

Persia,  and  a  prince  of  the  royal  house,  who  had 

led  the  attack,  was  chosen  to  be  king. 

Naturally,    under    the    circumstances    of    the 

accession  of  Darius   to  the  throne,   there  were 

rebellions   in   many   parts   of   the   wide   empire, 

which  occupied  him  continuously  for  four  years, 

and  were  not  ended  even  then.     Darius,  in  fact, 

was  called  upon  almost  to  repeat  the  conquests  of 

Cyrus,  and  to  organize  the  Persian  empire  anew. 

He  performed  the  task  with  hardly  less  than  the 

energy  and  ability  that  Cyrus  had  shown,  and, 

when  the  dominions  of  his  predecessor  had  been 

reduced  to  submission,  he  began  to  extend  them 

The  by  new  conquests,   in  every  inviting  direction, 

reorganized  towards  the  east,  the  west  and  the  north.     His 

expanded      armies  passed  beyond  the  Indus,  and  a  Persian 

empire  of      satrapy  was  formed  on  both  banks  of  that  stream. 

Darius  r J 

They  pushed  the  bounds  of  his  authority  to  the 
Caucasus,  between  the  Caspian  and  Black  seas, 
and  beyond  Egypt,  in  north  Africa,  over  Cyrene 
and  Barca,  the  Greek  colonies,  and  over  the 
Libyans,  half  way  to  the  Carthaginian  domain. 

But  these  were  mere  extensions  of  conquest  on 
old  lines.    In  another  direction,  beyond  the  Bos- 
porus, lay  a  field  which  was  new  to  the  arms  of  the 
east.     No  pharaoh  of  Egypt,  nor  any  king  of 
His  larger     Babylon,  or  Nineveh,  or  Ecbatana,  had  driven 
plans  his  chariots  of  war  on  European  soil,  and  Darius 

now  burned  with  an  ambition  to  subjugate  that 


The  Persian  Empire  of  Darius  167 

land.  Two,  especially,  of  its  people  had  provoked 
his  desire  to  check  the  freedom  they  enjoyed.  The 
Scythians,  of  the  wilds  at  the  north  of  the  Black 
Sea,  had  left  a  sore  memory  of  their  invading 
hordes  in  the  Asiatic  mind;  while  the  Greeks,  of 
the  Hellenic  peninsula,  who  pushed  themselves  124) 
everywhere,  in  every  sort  of  enterprise  and 
adventure,  spreading  all  sorts  of  disturbing  ideas 
abroad,  were  a  perpetual  challenge  to  one  who 
wished  to  be  master  of  the  whole  world  within 
his  ken.  Darius  formed  plans  that  were  aimed  at 
the  subjection  of  both. 

The  Greeks  and  Persians  had  had  some  vague 
knowledge  of  the  people  called  Scythians  for  more 
than  a  century.  They  applied  the  name  to 
barbarous  nomads  of  a  wide  range,  in  eastern 
Europe  and  central  Asia,  who  may  or  may  not 
have  been  kindred  in  race.  Probably  the  Scythic  The 
nomads  are  represented  by  some  of  the  tribes  Scythians 
called  Turkoman  and  Tatar  in  modern  times. 
Homer  knew  nothing  of  them  by  name,  but  they 
are  mentioned  by  Hesiod.  Western  Asia,  in  late 
years  of  the  seventh  century  before  Christ,  had 
the  awful  experience  of  an  invasion  by  their 
hordes,  who  desolated  Media,  Armenia,  and 
Assyria,  and  swept  even  to  Syria  and  Palestine. 
The  expedition  of  Darius  was  to  avenge  that 
attack.  Half  a  century  later,  Herodotus  wrote  #-™?°tus' 
an  account  of  the  Scythians,  which  defined  their  (trans,  by 

...  1         tn  1  J       1         Rawlinson) 

country  as  lying  between  the  Danube  and  the  3:bk.4 
Don.      Subsequently,    the    Scythian    name    was 
applied  by  ancient  writers  only  to  the  central 


168  From  Cyrus  to  Xerxes 

Asian  nomads,  while  those  of  eastern  Europe 
were  called  Sarmatians;  and  there  seems  to  be 
no  means  of  explaining  the  change  of  name.  Nor 
is  it  known  whether  the  people  we  now  call  Slavic, 
Sarmatians  or  Slavonic, — Russians,  Poles,  Servians,  and 
others, — who  occupy  nearly  the  whole  of  eastern 
Europe,  and  who  speak  languages  that  form  one 
division  of  the  Aryan  family  of  speech,  are 
descended  from  any  part  of  the  people  whom  the 
ancients  called  Sarmatians,  or  are  later  comers  in 
the  land. 

Being  already  in  control  of  the  Asiatic  shores  of 
the  Hellespont,  the  Propontis  and  the  Bosporus, 
the  first  measure  of  Darius  was  to  win  footings  on 
the  European  side,  which  he  did  at  Byzantium 
(the  Constantinople  of  later  times),  and,  also,  by 
conquest    of    the    Thracian    Chersonesus, — the 
peninsula  which  borders  the  Hellespont  on  the 
west.     Then  with  an  army  said  (with  probable 
invasion  of  exaggeration)  to  number  600,000  men,  and  a  fleet 
Europe  by    of  6oo  vessels  from  the  Greek  cities  of  Asia  and 
b.  c.  513      the  islands  that  were  subject  to  his  command,  he 
crossed  to  Byzantium,  in  513  B.  C,  over  a  floating 
bridge  built  for  him  by  a  Greek  engineer.    Seeking 
the  Scythians  first,  he  marched  northward,  send- 
ing his  fleet  to  enter  the  Danube  and  meet  the 
army    there.      The    Thracians,    through    whose 
country  he  passed,  submitted  as  he  advanced; 
His  unsuc-    the  Danube,  when  he  reached  it,  was  bridged  by 
essfui         njs  ODecHent;  Greek  engineers,  and  Darius  moved 

pursuit  of  °  ' 

the  on,  pursuing  the  Scythians,  who  retreated  before 

his  great  host.     How  far  into  their  country  he 


Persian  Invasion  of  Europe  169 

ventured  cannot  be  learned  from  the  Greek 
accounts,  which  are  manifestly  incorrect.  It  is 
enough  to  know  that  the  expedition  failed.  The 
Scythians  avoided  battle,  and  there  was  little  in 
their  country  to  waste  and  destroy.  The  long 
march  of  the  Persians  was  bootless,  and  Darius 
retreated  with  difficulty  to  the  Danube,  losing    Retreat 

1  -i  r   1   •  •      •      1      v  j  j    j  j-  of  Darius 

heavily  01  his  army,  it  is  believed,  and  dreading 
that  his  bridge  might  be  destroyed  by  the  Greeks 
whom  he  had  left  for  its  guard. 

The  guard  had  been  more  faithful  than 
patriotic,  and  the  Danube  bridge  was  safe;  but 
that  on  the  Bosporus  had  been  destroyed  by 
revolting  Greeks,  and  Darius  marched  with  haste 
to  the  Hellespont,  securing  the  lower  strait.  With 
part  of  his  army  he  then  recrossed  to  Asia,  and, 
personally,  he  had  no  more  to  do  with  European 
campaigns.  To  the  administrative  organization 
of  his  empire,  which  he  revised  with  much  ability, 
the  construction  of  excellent  highways  through- 
out its  length  and  breadth,  and  the  adornment  of 
a  new  capital  at  Susa,  in  Elam,  and  a  new  royal 
seat  at  Persepolis,  he  gave  most  of  his  own  care, 
while  others  conducted  his  wars.  Two  of  his 
generals  had  been  left  in  Thrace,  to  make  a  com-  Persian 
plete  conquest  of  that  country,  preparatory  to  j^sem 
further  proceedings  in  due  time. 

The  Defense  of  Greece  Against  the  Persians 

When  all  the  Thracian  tribes  had  been  reduced 
to  submission,  and  when  Byzantium  and  other 
revolting  cities  on  the  coast  had  been  recovered 


I  JO 


Herodotus, 
History 
(trans,  by  ' 
Rawlinson) 
3-4- 

Cox,  The 
Greeks  and 
the  Persians 


Conflict 
between 
Sparta  and 
Athens 


Tyranny 
of  the 
Pisistra- 
tidae  at 
Athens. 
B.  C.  560- 
5io 


From  Cyrus  to  Xerxes 

by  the  Persian  commanders,  one  of  the  latter, 
Megabyzus  by  name,  passed  from  Thrace  into 
Macedonia  (of  which  country  previous  to  that 
time  little  is  known),  and  compelled  its  sovereign 
to  acknowledge  the  supremacy  of  the  Persian 
king.  The  dominions  of  Darius  were  pushed  thus 
to  the  very  borders  of  the  Greek  states,  on  Euro- 
pean ground,  as  well  as  in  and  on  the  ^Egean'  Sea. 
The  menace  of  the  approach  of  the  all-powerful 
Persian  would  seem  to  have  been  grave  enough  to 
end  every  jealous  quarrel  among  the  Greek  com- 
munities, and  unite  them  in  common  measures  of 
defense  against  the  common  foe.  Instead  of  that 
being  the  case,  the  two  principal  states,  Sparta 
and  Athens,  were  so  bitterly  in  conflict  with  each 
other  at  this  time  that  the  latter  appealed  for  help 
to  the  Persian  satrap  of  Lydia.  Happily  the 
appeal  was  answered  by  a  demand  that  the 
Athenians  should  bow  their  necks  to  the  Persian 
yoke,  by  ignominious  gifts  of  earth  and  water — 
the  symbols  of  subjugation.  This  roused  the 
truer  spirit  of  Athens,  and  its  issue  with  Sparta 
was  fought  out  in  a  manful  way. 

At  this  time,  the  Athenians  had  made  their 
government  completely  democratic,  after  passing 
through  an  experience  of  tyranny,  which  did  not 
endure  long.  The  constitution  of  Solon  had  not 
worked  with  success,  and,  in  560  B.  C,  a  bold 
citizen,  Pisistratus,  who  won  the  favor  of  the 
poorer  people  by  demagogic  arts,  was  able  to 
establish  himself  in  the  Acropolis,  with  a  foreign 
guard  to  uphold  his  power.    Twice  driven  out,  he 


The  Persian  Menace  to  Greece  171 

was  twice  restored,  and  reigned  quite  justly  and 
prudently,on  the  whole,until  his  death  in  527B.  C. 
He  was  succeeded  by  his  two  sons,  Hippias  and 
Hipparchus;  but  the  latter  was  killed  in  514,  and 
Hippias  was  expelled  by  the  Spartans  in  5 10  B.  C; 
after  which  there  was  no  tyranny  in  Athens. 

In  the  forming  of  a  new  government  to  take  the 
place  of  the  overthrown  tyranny,  a  majority  of 
the  noble  or  privileged  class  at  Athens  had 
struggled  hard  to  regain  their  old  ascendancy; 
but  one  of  their  number,  Cleisthenes,  took  the  The 
side  of  the  people  and  helped  them  to  establish  a  democratic 

j  •  ..  TT  ,      .  .  republic 

democratic  constitution.     He  caused  the  ancient  established. 
tribal  division  of  the  citizens  to  be  abolished,  and  509-507 
substituted  a  division  which  mixed  the  members 
of  clans  and  broke  up  or  weakened  the  clannish  Greenidge, 
influence  in  politics.    He  enlarged  Solon's  senate  „/^^k 
or  council  and  divided  it  into  committees,  and  he  Constitu- 
brought  the  "ecclesia,"  or  popular  assembly,  into  History, 
a  more  active  exercise  of  its  powers.     He  also  ch-vl>sect-3 
introduced  the  custom  of  ostracism,  which  per- 
mitted the  citizens  of  Athens  to  banish  by  their 
vote  any  man  whom  they  thought  dangerous  to 
the  state.     The  constitution  of  Cleisthenes  was 
the  final  foundation  of  the  Athenian  democratic 
republic.       But    monarchical     and     aristocratic 
Sparta  resented  the  popular  change,  and  under- 
took to  restore  the  oligarchy  by  force  of  arms. 
The  Athenians,  not  yet  schooled  to  self-confidence 
as  a  democracy,  showed  a  moment  of  weakness, 
when  they  sought  Persian  help;    but  it  passed 
quickly,  and  the  newly  won  liberties  of  the  peo- 


172  From  Cyrus  to  Xerxes 

pie    were    defended    with     vigor     and     success. 
The  defensive  strength  of  the  Athenian  democ- 
racy was  to  be  proved  by  a  far  more  dreadful 
test;    a  test,  not  for  Athens  alone,  but  for  the 
Greek  people  at  large,  showing  to  the  world  their 
remarkable  qualities,  and  forming  the  beginning 
of   their   great   career.     Athens    gave    a    daring 
provocation  to  the  monarch  of  Persia  in  501  B.C., 
when  she  sent  ships  and  men  to  the  support  of  a 
Athens        great  revolt  of  the  Greek  cities  in  Asia  Minor,  and 
provokes      tjie  provocation  was  carried  beyond  forgiveness 

thewrathof  ...  . 

King  when  Sardis,  his  Lydian  capital,  was  captured  and 

B.ac  501  burned  by  Athenian  troops.  When  the  news  of 
this  reached  him  he  is  said  to  have  shot  an  arrow 
to  the  sky,  with  a  prayer  for  vengeance,  and  com- 
manded a  servant  to  repeat  to  him  thrice  daily 
the  admonition:  "Master,  remember  the  Atheni- 
ans." The  thought  of  vengeance  was  kept  in  his 
mind  for  nearly  seven  years,  until  the  Ionian 
revolt  had  been  suppressed  and  all  his  prepara- 
tions were  carefully  made.  Then,  in  493  B.  C,  he 
launched  an  expedition  against  Athens,  and 
against  Eretria,  another  Greek  state  which  had 
aided  the  Ionian  insurgents;  but  most  of  the  fleet 
that  bore  it  was  destroyed  by  a  storm.  Three 
Beginning  years  later,  in  490  B.  C,  he  sent  a  second  power- 
of  the  wars    ful  army  and  fleet,  which  took  Eretria  and  razed 

of  Greeks        . 

and  Per-  it  to  the  ground.  I  he  great  Persian  army  then 
marched  upon  Athens,  and  was  met  at  Marathon 
by  a  small  Athenian  force  of  9,000  men.  The 
little  city  of  Platsea  sent  1,000  more  to  stand  with 
them  in  the  desperate  encounter.    They  had  no 


sians 


Persian  Defeat  at  Marathon  173 

other  aid  in  the  fight,  and  the  Persians  were  a 
great,    unnumbered    host.      But   Miltiades,    the 
Greek  general  that  day,  planned  his  battle-charge 
so  well  that  he  routed  the  Asiatic  host  and  lost  b.c^o0' 
but  192  men. 

The   Persians   abandoned   their   attempt   and 
returned  to  their  wrathful  king.     One  citizen  of 
Athens,  Themistocles,   had   sagacity  enough   to  Themis- 
foresee  that  the  "Great  King,"  as  he  was  known,  tocles 
would  not  rest  submissive  under  his  defeat;   and 
with  difficulty  he  persuaded  his  fellow  citizens  to 
prepare  themselves  for  future  conflicts  by  build- 
ing a  fleet  and  by  fortifying  their  harbors,  thus 
making  themselves  powerful  at  sea.     Ten  years 
later   the   wisdom   of  his   counsels   was   proved. 
Darius  had  lived  but  four  years  after  the  Persian  Darius  sue 
defeat  at  Marathon,  and  lost  energy,  perhaps,  in  "eded  by 
his  closing  years.    His  son,  Xerxes,  who  succeeded  B.  c.  486 
him  in  486  B.  C,  had  to  deal  with  revolts  in 
Egypt  and  Babylonia,  and  it  was  not  until  480 
B.  C.  that  he  found  himself  prepared  to  invade 
Greece  and  assail  Athens  again.    Xerxes  took  the 
field  in  person  and  led  an  army  of  prodigious  size,  second 
crossing  the  Hellespont  by  a   bridge  of  boats,  attack,0 
This  time,  Sparta,  Corinth,  and  several  of  the  BC-480 
lesser  states,  rallied  with  Athens  to  the  defense  of 
the   common   country;    but  Thebes   and  Argos 
showed  friendship  to  the  Persians,  and  none  of  the 
important  island-colonies  contributed  any  help. 
Athens  was  the  brain  and  right  arm  of  the  war, 
notwithstanding   the   accustomed   leadership   of 
Sparta  in  military  affairs. 


174 


From  Cyrus  to  Xerxes 


Leonidas 
at  Ther- 
mopylae 


Artemisi- 
um 


Battle  of 
Salamis 


Plataea  and 
Mycale 


Early 
kingship 


The  first  encounter  was  at  Thermopylae,  where 
Leonidas  and  his  300  Spartans  defended  the  nar- 
row pass,  and  died  in  their  place  when  the  Per- 
sians found  a  way  across  the  mountain  to  sur- 
round them.  But  on  that  same  day  the  Persian 
fleet  was  beaten  at  Artemisium.  Xerxes  marched 
on  Athens,  however,  found  the  city  deserted,  and 
destroyed  it.  His  fleet  had  followed  him,  and  was 
still  stronger  than  the  naval  force  of  the  Greeks. 
Themistocles  forced  a  battle,  against  the  will  of 
the  Peloponnesian  captains,  and  practically 
destroyed  the  Persian  fleet.  This  most  memora- 
ble battle  of  Salamis  was  decisive  of  the  war,  and 
decisive  of  the  independence  of  Greece.  Xerxes, 
in  a  panic,  hastened  back  into  Asia,  leaving  one 
of  his  generals,  Mardonius,  with  300,000  men,  to 
pursue  the  war.  But  Mardonius  was  routed  and 
his  host  annihilated,  at  Platsea,  the  next  year, 
while  the  Persian  fleet  was  again  defeated  on  the 
same  day  at  Mycale. 

Rome  and  the  Romans 

The  Greeks  had  reached  the  beginning  of  their 
age  of  glory — their  Golden  Age — while  the 
Romans  were  but  coming  to  the  threshold  of  their 
career.  At  Rome,  as  at  Athens,  there  was  a  period 
of  early  kingship,  the  legends  of  which  are  as 
familiar  to  us  all  as  the  stories  of  the  Bible,  but 
the  real  facts  of  which  are  almost  totally  un- 
known. It  is  surmised  that  the  later  kings — the 
well  known  Tarquins  of  the  classical  tale — were 
Etruscan  princes   (it  is  certain  that  they  were 


Kingship  and  Aristocracy  at  Rome  175 

Etruscans),  who  had  broken  for  a  time  the  inde- 
pendence of  the  Romans  and  extended  their 
sovereignty  over  them.  It  is  suspected,  too,  that 
this  period  of  Etruscan  domination  was  one  in 
which  Roman  civilization  made  a  great  advance, 
under  the  tuition  of  a  more  cultivated  people. 
But  if  Rome  in  its  infancy  did  know  a  time  of 
subjugation,  the  endurance  was  not  long.  It 
ended,  according  to  Roman  chronology,  in  the  o^51011 
245th  year  of  the  city,  or  509  B.  C,  by  the  expul-  Tarquins, 
sion  of  Tarquin  the  Proud,  the  last  of  the  kings. 

That  the  Romans  of  this  early  period  were  not 
the  mere  warriors — the  mere  "wolves  of  Italy" 
that   most   historians   have   depicted — has   been 
argued  by  Professor  Goldwin  Smith  with  great 
force.     "It  is  evident,"  he  writes,  "that  in  the 
period  designated  as  that  of  the  kings,  when  Rome 
commenced  her  career  of  conquest,  she  was,  for 
that  time  and  country,  a  great  and  wealthy  city. 
This  is  proved  by  the  works  of  the  kings,  the  Earfy 
Capitoline  Temple,  the  excavation  for  the  Circus  culture 
Maximus,  the  Servian  Wall,  and,  above  all  the 
Cloaca  Maxima  [the  great  sewer]  ....     The 
Cloaca  Maxima  is  in  itself  conclusive  evidence  of 
a  large  population,  of  wealth,  and  of  a  not  incon- 
siderable degree  of  civilization.     .     .     .     Noth- 
ing surely  can  be  more  grotesque  than  the  idea  of 
a  set  of  wolves,  like  the  Norse  pirates  before  their 
conversion  to  Christianity,  constructing  in  their  Smithin 
den  the  Cloaca  Maxima.    That  Rome  was  com-  com- 
paratively great  and  wealthy  is  certain.    We  can  Review, 
hardly  doubt  that  she  was  a  seat  of  industry  and  May' l878 


176 


From  Cyrus  to  Xerxes 


An 

aristocratic 
republic 


Pirst 

"secession 
of  the 
plebs;" 
first  demo- 
cratic gain. 
B.  C.  494 


commerce,  and  that  the  theory  which  represents 
her  industry  and  commerce  as  having  been 
developed  subsequently  to  her  conquests  is  the 
reverse  of  the  fact.  Whence,  but  from  industry 
and  commerce,  could  the  population  and  the 
wealth  have  come?  Peasant  farmers  do  not  live 
in  cities,  and  plunderers  do  not  accumulate." 

The  republic  founded  in  Rome  after  the  expul- 
sion of  the  last  of  the  kings  was  not  democratic, 
like  that  of  Athens,  but  the  aristocratic  republic 
of  a  ruling  class.    The  consuls,  who  replaced  the 
kings,  were  required  to  be  patricians,  and  they 
were  chosen  by  the  landholders  of  the  state.    The 
senate  was  patrician;  all  the  important  powers  of 
government  were   in   patrician   hands,   and   the 
plebs  were  grievously  oppressed.    They  were  not 
of  a  tamely  submissive  race.     They  demanded 
powers  for  their  own  protection,   and  by  slow 
degrees  they  won  them — strong  as  the  patricians 
were  in  their  wealth  and  their  trained  political 
skill. 

Precisely  as  in  Athens,  the  first  great  effort 
among  the  common  people  was  to  obtain  relief 
from  crushing  burdens  of  debt,  which  had  been 
laid  upon  them  in  precisely  the  same  way — by  loss 
of  harvests  while  in  military  service,  and  by  the 
hardness  of  the  laws  which  creditors  alone  had 
framed.  An  army  of  plebs,  just  home  from  war, 
marched  out  of  the  city  and  refused  to  return 
until  magistrates  of  their  own  choosing  had  been 
conceded.  The  patricians  could  not  afford  to  lose 
the  bone  and  sinew  of  their  state,  and  they  yielded 


Tribunes  of  the  Plebs  177 

the  point  in  demand.  This  first  "secession  of  the 
plebs"  brought  about  the  first  great  democratic 
change  in  the  Roman  constitution,  by  calling  into 
existence  a  powerful  magistracy, — the  Tribunes 
of  the  Plebs, — who  stood  henceforth  between  the  Tribunes 
consuls  and  the  common  people,  for  the  protec-  plebs 
tion  of  the  latter. 


HISTORIC  EPOCHS 

ii 

epoch  of  the  greeks  and 

ROMANS 

(FROM  THE     PERSIAN     INVASION     OF     GREECE 
TO   THE    GOTHIC   CAPTURE    OF    ROME) 


CHIEF    CHARACTERS    OF    THE    SECOND    EPOCH 

CHAPTER  V 

FROM  THE  AGE  OF  XERXES  TO  THE  AGE  OF  HANNIBAL 

CHAPTER  VI 

FROM  THE  AGE  OF  HANNIBAL  TO   THE  DEATH  OF  CiESAR 

CHAPTER  VII 

FROM  THE  DEATH  OF  CiESAR  TO  THE  DEATH  OF  ALARIC 


CHIEF    CHARACTERS   OF   THE 
SECOND    EPOCH 

The  intelligence  of  the  Greeks  and  their  demo- 
cratic training  to  self-reliance  made  them  (in  the 
age  of  their  glory)  the  best  soldiers  of  the  time, 
and  they  were  in  great  demand  for  mercenary 
service  among  their  neighbors,  besides  being 
engaged  ceaselessly  in  wars  of  their  own.  Fighting 
came  to  be  a  trade  and  generalship  a  profession 
for  many,  Athenians  as  well  as  others,  and  this,  in 
Greek  opinion,  may  have  helped  to  dim  the  luster 
of  purely  military  exploits.  At  all  events,  it 
seems  certain  that  the  measure  of  fame  awarded 
in  ancient  Greece  to  mere  successes  in  war  was 
less  than  to  notable  achievements  in  many  other 
fields.  The  eminent  soldier  had  to  be  something 
more, — an  historian,  like  Xenophon,  or  a  political 
leader,  like  Cimon,  the  son  of  Miltiades,  or  a 
noble  character,  like  Epaminondas,  or  a  man  of 
universal  brilliancy,  like  Alcibiades, — if  his  name 
was  to  stand  very  high  on  the  Greek  scroll  of 
fame. 

Even  the  case  of  the  Macedonian-Greek  Alex- 
ander, called  "the  Great,"  is  not  such  an  excep-  the  Great! 
tion  to  this  statement  as  it  may  seem  to  be;  for  Bc-  ss*- 
the  extraordinary  fame  of  Alexander  rests,  main- 
ly, on  the  measureless  consequences,  unforeseen 
and  unintended  by  him,  that  came  from  his  easy- 
overthrow  of  the  Persian  power.    He  won  not  a 

181 


182 


Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch 


Philip  of 
Macedon. 
B.  C.  382- 
336 


Pericles. 
B.  C.  495- 
429 


little  of  it,  moreover,  by  a  single  constructive  act, 
in  which  he  is  credited  with  a  political  sagacity 
that  belongs  more  probably  to  other  minds. 
When  he  founded  the  famous  city  that  bears  his 
name  in  the  Nile  delta,  on  the  strip  of  land 
between  Lake  Mareotis  and,  the  Mediterranean, 
it  is  not  in  the  least  degree  likely  that  he  did  so 
from  his  own  original  perception  of  the  com- 
mercial advantages  of  the  site.  The  wide-awake 
Greek  traders  had  been  striving  too  long  after 
footholds  in  Egypt  for  that  discovery  to  be  left  to 
Alexander.  City-planting  was  a  royal  pastime  in 
those  days,  and  Alexander  indulged  himself  in  it 
wherever  he  went.  Of  the  many  he  founded,  one, 
only,  grew  to  grandeur  and  wealth. 

Alexander  has  received  more  than  his  due  of 
fame;  Philip,  his  father,  has  received  less.  It  is 
not  easy  to  dispute  the  judgment  of  Niebuhr  and 
other  historians,  both  ancient  and  modern,  who 
rate  the  abilities  and  rank  the  achievements  of  the 
father,  in  their  actual  quality,  above  those  of  the 
son.  Alexander  harvested  the  fruit  of  Philip's 
work,  and  the  harvest  bore  with  it  a  surpassing 
fame. 

Statesmanship, — wisdom  and  skill  in  political 
affairs, — was  prized  highly  by  the  Greeks;  but 
something  else,  even  there,  seemed  needed  for  the 
gilding  of  a  very  lustrous  name.  It  was  the 
statesman  like  Pericles,  who  could  decorate  his 
policy,  so  to  speak,  with  the  graces  of  eloquence, 
of  well-displayed  taste,  and  of  a  well-applied 
patronage  of  literature  and  art,  who  won  the  most 


Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch  183 

renown.  The  policy  of  Pericles  was  condemned 
by  events.  On  the  domestic  side  it  corrupted  the 
Athenian  democracy,  by  pampering  indulgences; 
on  the  foreign  side  it  led  Athens  into  the  ruinous 
Peloponnesian  War;  but  it  had  an  artistic  side 
which  captivated  his  countrymen  and  which  has 
been  lasting  in  charm.  He  gave  splendor  and 
beauty  to  Athens,  not  scrupling  to  use  moneys  of 
the  allied  cities, — trust  funds  in  the  treasury  of 
the  Delian  confederacy, — for  his  lavish  archi- 
tectural expenditure.  Moreover,  fortune  gave 
him  his  ascendancy  in  one  of  the  rare  seasons  of 
fruitful  genius,  so  that  his  name,  like  those  of 
Augustus  at  Rome  and  Louis  XIV.  of  France, 
received  luster  from  an  abnormal  brilliancy  in  the 
age. 

Morally,  the  culture  of  the  Greeks  shows  noth- 
ing of  the  distinction  that  belongs  to  it  on  the 
intellectual  side.  Certain  instincts  of  rectitude 
and  honor  that  were  conspicuous  in  much  of 
Roman  character  appear  to  have  been  weak 
(speaking  generally)  in  their  minds.  Artistically 
and  intellectually,  however,  they  appreciated  all 
virtues,  and  valued  them  in  their  public  men. 
They  did  justice  to  the  moral  superiority  of  the 
great  Theban,  Epaminondas,  who  shines  among  Epam; 


nnon- 


the   soldier-statesmen  of  Greek  history  by  the  das-  B- (- 

r  ,.  .       .  ,    ,   .  i-i  4i8(?)-36a 

purity  01  his  patriotism  and  his  general  upright- 
ness, as  well  as  by  the  large  and  generous  spirit 
that  seemed  to  animate  him  in  all  that  he  did. 

On  the  other  hand,  want  of  principle, — a  moral 
lightness    of    character, — ruined    the    career    of 


184  Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch 

Aidbiades    Alcibiades,   a  man  of  such  genius  that,  in  the 

b.c.4So(.?)  opinion  of  Thucydides,  he  might  have  changed 

the  result  of  the  Peloponnesian  War.     Niebuhr 

finds  no  one  in  ancient  history,  save  Caesar,  to 

compare  with  him  in  powers;    and  yet,  beloved 

disciple  and  friend  of  Socrates  as  he  was  in  his 

youth,  the  life  of  Alcibiades  was  a  failure,  because 

he  had  nothing  in  his  moral  nature  that  could 

guide  him  in  a  straight  course. 

Although  we  have  to  say  of  the  Greeks,  as  a 

race,  that  they  were  not  eminent  in  moral  culture, 

they  were  the  first  of  all  peoples,  nevertheless,  to 

make  conduct  a  subject  of  study,  in  the  endeavor 

to  arrive  at  fixed  principles  of  right  and  wrong; 

and  the  noblest  names  furnished  to  the  roll  of  the 

Greek  immortals  are  from  the  founders  of  that 

Socrates.      philosophical  study.     In  the  ages  before  Christ 

B.c.47o(?)  there  js  no  other  character  known  to  us  that  is 
-399 

morally  so  great  as  that  of  Socrates,  the  typical 

seeker  after  truth, — sincerest  of  great  thinkers, 
most  self-regardless  of  great  teachers,  serenest  of 
great  souls.  There  was  no  dogmatism  in  his 
teaching;  "his  mission  was  to  cure  men's  minds 
of  half-thinking, — to  drive  them  to  the  end  of  a 
thought, — force  them  to  rummage  the  contents  of 
an  idea  and  find  all  that  belongs  to  it." 

Socrates  left  nothing  in  writing;   most  of  what 

we  know  of  him  is  from  the  representation  of  his 

Plato.  B.C.  shrewd   questioning   and   wise   discourse   in   the 

429(0-347    woncierfui  Dialogues  of  his  great  disciple,  Plato, 

and  from  the  Memorabilia  that  Xenophon  wrote 

as  a  tribute  of  reverence  and  love.     If  Plato  had 


Alexander  the  Great 

Head  of  the  Statue  of  Alexander 
the  Great,  Munich,  Glyptothek 


Pericles 

From  Bust  in  British  Museum 


Tp?„„r7r"""'-~~r' "- 7"~  "" 


... •■■■ •— 


I 


Socrates 

From  Bust  in  the  Capitol,  Rome 


Plato 

From  Bust  in  Uffizi  Gallery 


Chief  Characters  of  the  Slcond  Epoch  185 

not  been  nearly  his  master's  equal  in  intellect  and 
spirit  he  could  never  have  delineated  the  grand 
character  of  the  homely  sculptor  as  he  did.  In 
his  own  right  he  holds  a  place  among  the  loftiest 
thinkers  of  all  times;  but  assuredly  it  is  higher 
because  he  talked  with  Socrates  than  it  would 
otherwise  have  been. 

From  the  same  truth-seeking  school  came 
Aristotle,  who  led  the  search  into  added  fields  and  Aristotle, 
made  it  more  scientific  and  exact.  Philosophy  in  322 
his  hands  was  enlarged,  to  embrace  natural  sci- 
ence, as  well  as  morals  and  metaphysics.  Natural 
science,  indeed,  may  be  said  to  have  originated 
with  Aristotle,  if  we  define  it  with  strictness,  as 
knowledge  pursued  and  acquired  by  systematic 
observation,  classification,  and  comparison  of  the 
phenomena  of  the  natural  world.  No  other 
teacher  of  antiquity  projected  so  much  of  his 
teaching  across  the  chasm  of  the  Dark  Ages,  to 
the  mediaeval  and  modern  mind;  no  other  teacher 
of  any  period  was  ever,  for  so  long  a  time  and  for 
so  large  a  part  of  mankind,  the  oracle  of  knowl- 
edge and  the  guide  of  thought.  Macedonian  by 
birth,  Athenian  by  culture,  pupil  of  Plato,  tutor 
of  Alexander  the  Great,  founder  of  an  independ- 
ent school  of  philosophy  at  Athens  after  Plato's 
death,  sometimes  called  "the  Stagirite,"  from 
Stagira,  the  place  of  his  nativity,  sometimes 
called  "the  peripatetic  philosopher,"  from  his 
habit  of  walking  as  he  lectured,  in  his  school  of 
the  Lyceum, — these  are  the  principal  dry  facts  of 
his  life. 


1 86 


Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch 


Zeno,  died 
B.  C.  264, 

and  the 
Stoics 

Epicurus. 
B.  C.  342- 
270 


iEschylus. 
B.  C.  525- 
456 


Since  Aristotle,  who  was  the  first  to  attempt  a 
logical  science  of  the  principles  of  human  conduct, 
many  systems  of  ethical  theory  have  been  worked 
out;  but  they  are  all  divided  by  one  main  con- 
tention, following  one  or  the  other  of  two  lines  of 
theory, — the  stoical,  so  called  from  the  school  of 
Zeno,  who  taught  it  at  Athens,  and  the  epicurean, 
named  from  its  first  promulgator,  Epicurus.  In 
the  stoic  view,  right  and  wrong  are  absolute  facts, 
belonging  to  the  nature  of  things;  in  the  epicu- 
rean, they  are  mere  backward  reflections  from  the 
consequences  of  conduct,  and  our  recognition  of 
them  is  derived  from  our  observation  of  what 
does  and  what  does  not  conduce  to  happiness. 
The  stoic  welcomes  happiness  as  the  high  reward 
of  virtue;  the  epicurean  values  virtue  as  a  means 
to  happiness;  what  one  slights  as  a  mere  incident, 
the  other  cherishes  as  the  end  of  all  seeking.  In 
its  essence,  the  nobler  stoic  view  is  found  in  the 
teachings  of  Socrates,  Plato,  and  Aristotle;  but 
Zeno  made  it  the  basis  of  an  ethical  scheme  of 
life.  His  School  of  the  Stoics  received  its  name 
from  the  porch  of  the  Agora,  where  his  discourses 
were  given.  The  opposing  school  of  Epicurus 
was  founded  at  nearly  the  same  time. 

It  is  idle  to  ask  whether  the  Greek  genius  shone 
most  in  pure  thought  or  in  art.  Philosophers, 
dramatists,  orators,  historians,  sculptors,  archi- 
tects, painters,  in  the  same  matchless  age,  found 
different  expressions  for  the  marvelous  powers  of 
their  race.  Perhaps  the  dramatic  expression  was 
the  more  original  one,  since  the  Greek  drama  was 


Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch  187 

an  absolute  creation,  springing  as  a  distinctly 
artistic  form  of  literature  from  the  conceptions  of  | '^onds 
^Eschylus,     whom    John    Addington     Symonds   TJ"  Greek 

X         lit.)    j         Xy 

characterizes  as  "the  demiurge  of  ancient  art."  376,377 
"Tragedy,"   says  Mr.   Symonds,   "had   scarcely 
passed   beyond   the  dithyrambic  stage  when  he 
received  it  from  the  hands  of  Phrynicus.    yEschy- 
lus  gave  it  the  form  which,  with  comparatively 
unimportant  alterations,  it  maintained  through- 
out the  brilliant  period  of  Attic  culture."     He 
developed  dialogue  and  devised  stage  machinery 
and  scenes;    while  "the  purely  creative  faculty 
has  never  been  exhibited  upon  a  greater  scale,  or 
applied    to    material    more   utterly    beyond    the 
range  of  the  feebler  poets,"  than  in  the  conception 
and  composition  of  the  great  tragedies  that  he 
gave  to  his  reconstructed  stage.     Sophocles,  his  Sophocles, 
next  successor,  whom  Professor  Jebb  regards  as  4o6  ' 
"the  purest  type  of  the  Greek  intellect,"  refined 
the   art  which   ^Eschylus    had   modeled   with    a  buC48c> 
powerful  but  rude  touch,  and  Euripides  gave  it  a  4o6 
warmth  of  emotion  that  was  new,  or  humanized 
it,  as  some  critics  prefer  to  say. 

Meantime,  Herodotus  and  Thucydides  were  Herodotus, 
not  only  discovering  another  subject  of  art,  but  -424(1)4  " 
perfecting  another  form  of  it,  in  the  composition 
of  history,  evoking  a  noble  literature  from  what 
had  been  hitherto  a  bare  chronicling  of  events. 
Herodotus,  "the  Father  of  History,"  as  he  was 
named  with  justice,  worked  in  the  larger  field, 
traveling  widely  in  Asia  and  Egypt,  as  well  as  in 
Greece,  to  gather  materials  for  a  history  of  the 


1 88  Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch 

wars  of  the  Greeks  with  the  Persians,  which  is,  in 
reality,  an  account  of  all  that  he  could  learn  of  the 
annals  and  the  life  of  the  ancient  nations  of  the 
east  before  and  during  his  day.  Until  the  buried 
records  of  Egypt  and  western  Asia  began  to  be 
found  and  deciphered  in  recent  years,  his  work 
was  the  great  treasure-store  of  ancient  history, 
but  regarded  with  much  unmerited  distrust.  The 
late  discoveries  tend  to  prove  that  Herodotus  was 
as  careful  an  investigator  of  facts  as  one  could 
well  be  in  an  age  when  fables  were  rife.  Thucy- 
Thucydides  dides  stayed  on  surer  ground.     He  was  the  his- 

B.C.47i(?)     .       •  r  ,  -  +-  .1  r  i  • 

-401  (?)  tonan  or  his  own  time,  partly  or  his  own  experi- 
ences, as  an  actor  in  the  Peloponnesian  War,  and 
he  produced  the  one  model  of  historical  composi- 
tion that  is  so  accepted,  by  common  consent,  to 
this  day. 

Two  centuries  after  Thucydides,  when  the 
Romans  had  vanquished  Greece,  they  carried  as 
a  prisoner  to  Rome,  among  the  chief  men  of  the 
Achaean  League,  one,  Polybius,  an  Arcadian 
Greek,  "who  first,"  says  Mommsen,  "or  rather 
alone,  brought  literary  appreciation  and  descrip- 
tion to  bear  on  Rome's  place  in  the  world,  and  to 
whom  subsequent  generations,  and  we,  too,  owe 
the  best  part  of  our  knowledge  of  the  Roman 
development."  The  Histories  of  Polybius,  begin- 
b.  c.  204-  ning  with  the  Hannibalic  War  and  ending 
125  (?)  abruptly  in  the  midst  of  the  events  of  the  year 
152  B.  C,  are  of  inestimable  value  for  the  period, 
though  imperfectly  preserved. 

Still  later,  by  nearly  two  centuries,  appeared 


Aristotle 

From  Antique  Bust 


Aeschylus 

From  Bust  in  Capitol,  Rome 


Thucydides 

From  Bust  in  Museum,  Naples 


Ptolemy  Soter 

From  a  Coin 


Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch  189 

Plutarch,  whose  charming  parallel  biographies  of  ^eT^' (?) 
Greek  and  Roman  public  men  are  the  best  known  -120(f) 
of  all  Greek  historical  writings  to  modern  general 
readers.  Plutarch  "is  a  moralist  rather  than  a 
historian.  His  interest  is  less  for  politics  and  the 
changes  of  empires,  and  much  more  for  personal 
character  and  individual  actions  and  motives  to 
action." 

Greek  oratory  can  hardly  be  called  an  original  Greek 
creation,  since  public  speech  must  be  almost  as 
old  as  human  society;  but  nothing  in  any  other 
equally  ancient  literature  resembles  the  formal 
art  of  the  orations  of  Pericles,  Antiphon,  Andoci- 
des,  Lysias,  Isocrates,  Isseus,  Demosthenes, 
yEschines,  and  others  of  a  famous  group. 

In  arts  addressed  to  the  eye  the  Greeks  of 
antiquity  have  been  the  teachers  of  all  the  world  arrt^ts 
since.  The  edifices  of  Ictinus  and  Mnesicles  are 
in  ruins;  the  finest  and  most  famed  sculpture  of 
Polycletus,  Phidias,  Praxiteles,  Scopas,  and 
Lysippus  have  perished;  but  enough  has  escaped 
the  destroying  hand  of  Time  to  furnish  types  of 
perfection  that  are  as  changeless  as  truth.  Of 
Greek  painting,  on  the  contrary,  the  modern 
world  knows  really  nothing  beyond  the  names  of 
Polygnotus,  Apollodorus,  Zeuxis,  Apelles,  and 
other  painters  who  were  famous  in  their  day. 

After  the  conquests  of  Alexander  had  drawn 
the  Greeks  into  Asia  and  Africa,  the  Hellenic 
genius  made  its  most  brilliant  displays  in  those  g^md^ed 
outer  fields.    Ptolemy  Soter  and  his  son  Ptolemy  B.  c.  283 
Philadelphus,  the  first  and  second  of  the  Mace- 


190 


Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch 


Ptolemy 
Phila- 
delphia. 
B.  C.  309- 
247 


The 
Seleucidae 


Judas 

Maccabasus 
died  B.  C. 
160 


Roman 

chief 

characters 


donian  kings  of  Egypt,  are  distinctly  the  most 
notable  actors  of  their  time  in  public  affairs. 
Their  reorganization  of  the  venerable  realm  of  the 
Pharaohs;  their  splendid  creation  of  the  city  of 
Alexandria;  the  success  of  their  fine  ambition  to 
make  it  the  center  of  learning, — the  seat  of  the 
greatest  libraries  and  schools, — were  achieve- 
ments of  statesmanship  hardly  equaled  in  the 
ancient  world. 

Nothing  to  compare  with  it  was  done  by  the 
Seleucid  kings,  in  their  Syrian  dominion;  though 
magnificent  cities,  like  Antioch,  sprang  up  at  their 
command.  Among  those  who  became  subjects  of 
the  Syrian  monarchy  were  a  people  whose  capa- 
bility was  equaled  only  by  that  of  the  Romans 
and  the  Greeks.  These,  the  Jews,  were  invited 
and  made  use  of  by  the  Ptolemies,  but  oppressed 
by  their  later  sovereigns,  the  Seleucids,  who  drove 
them  to  revolt,  and  thus  called  into  history  the 
one  character  of  striking  interest  in  the  annals  of 
the  Syrian  kingdom.  Judas,  called  Maccabseus, 
who  became  the  leader  of  the  rising,  was  so  much 
its  master-spirit  that  the  patriotic  motive  in  it 
died  with  him  when  he  fell  in  battle.  Through 
factious  struggles  that  came  afterward,  his  family 
was  raised,  by  the  prestige  he  had  given  it,  to  a 
re-erected  Jewish  throne. 

When  we  turn  from  the  Greeks  to  the  Romans, 
seeking  distinguished  company,  we  find  the 
character  of  the  larger  circles  of  high  society 
much  changed.  The  Latin  race  spends  its  powers 
more  in  action  than  in  thought.     It  borrows  its 


Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch  191 

philosophy  from  the  Greeks;  the  science  it  studies 
is  law;  its  literature  is  a  late  production,  for  it  is 
slow  in  learning  skill  with  the  pen;  the  arts  it 
cultivates  most  assiduously  are  those  of  the 
sword.  Hence  the  Roman  trump  of  fame  sounds 
most  frequently  a  martial  note;  the  majority  of 
illustrious  names  in  the  annals  of  the  republic  and 
the  empire  are  those  of  soldiers  and  men  conspicu- 
ous in  public  affairs. 

Passing  the  half-mythical  war-chiefs  and 
patriots  of  early  legend,  such  as  Lucius  Junius 
Brutus,  Coriolanus,  Cincinnatus,  Camillus,  it  is  Legendary 
not  till  we  come  to  the  Punic  wars  that  the  great 
personages  of  substantial  eminence  in  Roman 
history  begin  to  be  met.  Then,  in  succession,  we  Meteilus, 
come  upon  Meteilus,  who  defeated  the  Cartha-  died  B- c- 

*■  221 

ginians   at   Panormus;     Flaminius,    tribune   and 

consul,  builder  of  the  Flaminian  Way,  first  dis-  ^.Ia?1lni"s' 

tributer  of  public  lands  among  the  veterans  of  the  217 
wars,  who  suffered  defeat  and  death  in  battle  with 

Hannibal    at    Lake    Trasimene;     Fabius,    "the  ^'g'c 

cunctator"  (lingerer),  who  wearied  and  wore  out  203 

the    army    of    the    invincible    Carthaginian,    by  _  „,    ,. 

J  >  .  C.  Claudius 

ceaseless    harassment,    evading    battle;      Caius  Nero,  con- 
Claudius  Nero,  who  defeated  Hasdrubal;  Publius 
Cornelius  Scipio,  called  Africanus,  who  subdued 
Carthaginian  Spain,  carried  the  war  to  the  gates  canus.  B.C. 
of  Carthage  itself,  overthrew  Hannibal  at  Zama,  \l*(j) 
ended  the  second  Punic  War,  and  became  a  per- 
sonal power  in  the  republic  too  great  to  be  amen- 
able to  law. 

But  the  grand  figure  in  these  wars  is  Hannibal, 


sul,  b.  c 
207 

Scipio  Afri- 


192  Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch 

Hannibal.     a  mightier  warrior  than  Rome  ever  produced, 
183  save  Caesar  only;   beside  whom  the  commanders 

who  opposed  him  were  mere  prentices,  taking 
lessons  in  war  from  their  own  discomfitures  and 
defeats.  The  Romans  were  but  rude  fighters  till 
he  taught  them  strategic  art,  which  they  were 
quick  to  learn,  and  learned  thoroughly  well.  In 
character,  too,  Hannibal  appears  to  represent  one 
of  the  highest  of  military  types.  Seen  only  in 
portraiture  by  his  enemies,  with  features  of 
barbarity  that  are  most  likely  exaggerated,  he 
shows  nothing  mean,  nothing  that  is  not  massive 
and  strong. 

The  heroes  of  the  next  Roman  campaigns  of 

importance,  which  extinguished  the  Macedonian 

Fiarnimnus  kingdom  and  subjugated  Greece,  were  Flamini- 

-174(f)         nus,  who  defeated  the  third  Philip  of  Macedon,  at 

Cynoscephalse,  and  Lucius  ^Emilius  Paulus,  who 

overthrew  Perseus,  son  of  Philip,  at  Pydna,  and 

Paulus,        took  him  captive  to  Rome.    A  little  later,  the  son 

B2  C-  of  yEmilius  Paulus,  adopted  by  the  great  Scipio 

and  known  as  Scipio  vEmilianus,  or  Scipio  Afri- 

Sipio  AfH-    Canus  Minor,  gave  final  satisfaction  to  the  Roman 

Minor.         hatred  and  dread  of  Carthage,  by  capturing  and 

destroying  the  city,  after  its  despairing  people  had 

been  driven  to  resist  the  oppressive  and  insulting 

mandates  of  Rome. 

The  Roman  most  responsible  for  this  act  of 
Cato,  the     savage  policy  was  the  stern  censor,  Cato,  who 

CensorB.c.  typified  the  unlovely  hardness  of  temper  which 
234-149         \ i  J  . 

virtue  had  a  tendency  to  acquire  in  that  strenu- 
ous race.    Hard,  narrow,  and  niggardly,  he  was 


b.  c 

I8s(?)-I29 


Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch  193 

no  harsher  to  others  than  to  himself.  He  was 
bitter  in  hostility  to  the  Greek  culture  which 
invaded  Rome,  because  he  hated  the  suppleness 
of  the  Greek  character;  yet,  in  mind,  he  was 
probably  the  most  cultivated  Roman  of  his  day. 
As  an  orator  and  writer  he  is  credited  with  the 
first  moulding  of  classic  Latin  prose.  He  had  the 
distinction  of  honesty  and  simplicity  of  life,  in  an 
age  when  both  had  become  rare. 

For  we  have  arrived  at  the  evil  days  of  the 
republic,  when  the  poison  of  its  long,  intoxicating 
draughts  of  spoil  and  tribute  from  conquered 
nations  had  corrupted  its  blood;  when  the  blight 
of  overspreading  slavery  had  stricken  its  social 
system;  when  its  common  people  had  become 
pauperized  and  degraded,  and  its  dominating 
patricians  kept  their  power  and  their  possessions 
by  feeding,  diverting  and  bribing  an  always 
dangerous  mob.  Throughout  the  last  century  of 
the  republic  the  prominent  figures  in  its  history 
are  patriotic  reformers,  who  strove  vainly  against 
the  maladies  that  were  destroying  the  state,  and 
chiefs  of  faction  who  hastened  the  destruction  by 
internecine  wars.    The  two  brothers,  Tiberius  and  Jlberl,us 

m  (jraccnus, 

Caius  Gracchus,  who  took  upon  themselves,  in  slain  b.  c. 
turn,  the  perilous  duty  of  leading  attacks  on  the   I33 
grasping  senate  and  its  insolent  party, — monopo- 
lists of  the  soil  of  Italy  and  plunderers  of  Roman 
provinces, — were  nobly  blind  to  the  debasement  Caius  Grac 
of  the  people  whom  they  tried  to  serve.    The  only  Rc'iaiT 
sign  of  hope  for  Rome  when  it  looked  on  at  the 
bold  murdering  of  one  and  then  the  other,  doing 


Marius. 
B.C. 


194  Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch 

nothing  to  defend  or  avenge  them,  was  in  the  fact 
that  it  could,  even  yet,  breed  two  patriots  of  the 
ancient  mould. 

The  distinguished  products  of  the  next  genera- 
tion were  the  terrible  soldiers,  Marius  and  Sulla, 

i55(-?)-s6  who  drew  the  factions  of  the  time  into  military 
camps.  Marius,  low-born,  rude,  barbarous,  a 
strong  soldier  and  naught  else,  became  the  idol  of 
the  Roman  populace  by  reason  of  his  successes  in 
the  Jugurthine  War  and  against  the  invading 
Cimbri  and  Teutones,  and  might  have  centered 
the  whole  government  in  himself  if  he  had  known 
how;  but  he  had  no  capacity  for  the  political  posi- 

Suia    B.C.  i[on  'm  which  he  was  placed.    Sulla,  coming  from 

i38(?)-78  .  '  ° 

the  so-called  "Social  War"  with  the  Italians  as  a 
commander  of  devoted  legions  that  would  follow 
him  against  Rome  itself,  is  no  soldier  of  the 
Marius  type,  but  one  of  the  enigmatic  characters 
of  history,  impossible  to  understand.  Seen  in  the 
successive  acts  of  his  dramatic  career, — leaving 
his  enemies  to  establish  themselves  in  power  and 
to  massacre  his  friends,  while  he  goes  with  cool 
indifference  to  undertake  and  finish  the  Mithri- 
datic  war  in  Greece;  returning  with  equally  cool 
self-confidence  to  make  himself  master  and 
dictator  at  Rome;  destroying  his  enemies  with 
passionless  brutality,  by  proscriptions  that  mark 
them  for  any  assassin  who  will  hunt  them  down; 
framing  a  new  constitution  for  Rome  in  which  he 
plans  nothing  for  himself;  laying  down  the  power 
that  is  absolute  in  his  hands,  and  withdrawing  to 
private  life,  like  a  philosopher,  and  like  one  who 


Demosthenes 

Statue  in  the  Vatican 


Hannibal 

From  Bust  in  Museum,  Naples 


Cicero 

From  Bust  in  Uffizi  Gallery 


Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch  195 

has  nothing  to  fear, — his  whole  course  is  unique, 
his  character  to  be  compared  with  no  other. 

When  Sulla  left  the  stage  there  were  four  men 
conspicuously  aspiring  to  control  the  future  des- 
tinies of  Rome.  They  were  Pompey  (Pompeius), 
Crassus,  Cicero,  and  Caesar.  Pompey  was  already  bxTJoo-w 
very  near  to  a  height  of  military  fame,  power,  and 
popularity  from  which  he  could  have  dominated 
the  situation,  as  Sulla  did,  if  a  really  scrupulous 
respect  for  the  republic  and  its  constitution  had 
not  held  him  back.  Of  the  four  men  named,  he 
and  Cicero  were  undoubtedly  the  least  self-seek-  *!0™pj£ 
ing  in  their  ambition,  though  it  cannot  be  said  of 
either  that  his  patriotism  was  unalloyed.  There 
were  two-sided  motives,  public  and  personal,  in 
both  cases,  strong  enough  on  each  side  to  cause 
hesitations  that  were  fatal  to  success.  Pompey, 
moreover,  seemed  weakened  by  a  lack  of  any  clear 
political  ideas  for  the  guiding  of  his  course;  and 
so  he  drifted  till  he  fell  into  Caesar's  wake.  Cicero 
had  no  such  lack.  The  impossible  aim  of  main-  glc.T06-.13 
taining  senatorial  ascendancy  in  the  government, 
under  the  forms  of  the  republican  constitution, 
was  very  definite  and  confirmed  in  his  mind.  But 
Cicero,  the  great  orator,  the  finely  thoughtful 
essayist,  the  meditative  moralist,  the  cultured 
Roman  gentleman,  was  not  at  his  best  in  politics, 
and  no  match  for  one,  at  least,  of  those  with 
whom  he  contended. 

The  ambition  of  Crassus  was  founded  on  little 
more  than  the  potency  of  his  wealth,  and  it 
became  helpful  to  Caesar,  rather  than  to  himself. 


196  Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch 

That  youngest  of  the  four  competitors  for  power, 
Julius  Caesar,  least  in  prominence  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  race,  won  the  lordship  of  the  Roman 
world  because  he  never  mistook  the  straight  way 
to  that  goal;  never  hesitated;  never  doubted  that 
by  reaching  it  he  would  do  the  best  that  was  pos- 
sible for  Rome,  as  well  as  for  himself;  never 
scrupled  to  use  means  needful  to  his  ends;  never 
was  carried  by  vengeance  or  vanity  or  any  un- 
ruled passion  beyond  the  needful  means;  exer- 
cised, in  fact,  the  powers  of  an  intellect  and  a  will 
that  seem  to  have  been  the  most  absolutely 
unerring  ever  given  to  a  man  for  great  practical 
achievements  in  the  larger  affairs  of  the  world. 
He  was  of  too  large  a  nature  to  do  evil  things 
unnecessarily,  and  so  he  shines  even  morally  in 
comparison  with  many  of  his  kind;  but  he  had  no 
scruples.  If  we  look  at  his  intellectual  qualities 
alone,  and  compare  him  only  with  other  states- 
men and  soldiers,  he  does  certainly  overtop  them 
all. 

So,  too,  in  the  case  of  Caesar's  heir,  Octavius, 
called  Augustus,  who  consummated  Caesar's 
work,  and  who,  by  his  organizing  genius,  became 
the  true  founder  of  the  Roman  empire,  on  ground 
which  Caesar  had  cleared  and  prepared  for  it, — 
we  leave  moral  considerations  out  of  the  account 
if  we  find  attributes  of  greatness  in  him.  His 
historical  position  is  exceptional  in  grandeur,  and 
bT^v'  yet  history  has  dealt  contemptuously  with  his 
A.  D.  14  name.  De  Quincey  calls  his  character  repulsive. 
Gibbon  wrote  of  him:  "A  cool  head,  an  unfeeling 


Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch  197 

heart,  and  a  cowardly  disposition,  prompted  him, 
at  the  age  of  nineteen,  to  assume  the  mask  of 
hypocrisy,  which  he  never  afterward  laid  aside. 
.  .  .  His  virtues  and  even  his  vices  were 
artificial;  and,  according  to  the  various  dictates 
of  his  interest,  he  was  at  first  the  enemy,  and  at 
last  the  father,  of  the  Roman  world."  Yet,  how 
can  we  deny  surpassing  high  qualities  of  some 
description  to  a  man  who  set  the  shattered  Roman 
republic,  with  all  its  democratic  bases  broken  up, 
on  a  new — an  imperial — foundation,  so  gently 
that  it  suffered  no  further  shock,  and  so  solidly 
that  it  endured,  in  whole  or  in  part,  for  a  millen- 
nium and  a  half? 

We  can  feel  well  assured  that  no  such  structure 
would  have  come  from  the  hands  of  the  genial, 
eloquent,   warm-blooded   and   voluptuous  Mark  Antony. 
Antony,  who  had  seemed  for  a  time  to  be  the  man  B-  c-  8^a 
destined  to  take  Caesar's  place. 

Until  the  last  generation  that  lived  under  the 
republic,  the  Romans  produced  no  literature  that 
can  claim  the  classic  rank.  The  first  masterpieces 
of  their  language  are  found  in  the  prose  of  Cicero 
and  Caesar,  in  the  lyrics  of  Catullus,  and  in  the 
philosophical  poem  of  Lucretius,  On  the  Nature  of 
Things.  In  this  last  named,  the  most  remarkable 
of  didactic  poems,  written  to  interpret  nature  and 
life  by  the  Epicurean  philosophy,  "we  are  brought  Lucretius. 
face  to  face,"  says  a  recent  writer,  "not  only  with  9S  '9 
an  extraordinary  literary  achievement,  but  with 
a  mind  whose  profound  and  brilliant  genius  has 
only  of  late  years,  and  with  the  modern  advance 


198  Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch 

¥afni\  °^  Physical  and  historical  science,  been  adequately 
erature,  pp.  recognized.  ...  In  his  theory  of  light  Lu- 
cretius was  in  advance  of  Newton.  In  his  theory 
of  chemical  affinities  (for  he  describes  the  thing 
though  the  nomenclature  was  unknown  to  him) 
he  was  in  advance  of  Lavoisier.  In  his  theory  of 
the  ultimate  constitution  of  the  atom  he  is  in 
striking  agreement  with  the  views  of  the  ablest 
living  physicists."  And  the  poem  is  not  only 
astonishing  in  its  scientific  ideas,  but  is  "a  model 
of  the  purest  Latin  idiom  in  the  precise  age  of  its 
perfection." 
Catalius.  The  lyrics  of  Catullus  are  admired  by  many 

b.  c.  87(?)-  critics  quite  equally  with  those  of  Pindar  and 
Sappho;  some  rank  him  above  all  other  Romen 
poets,  and  few  question  his  standing  among  the 
first. 

The  period  of  the  perfection  of  Latin  prose, 
commonly  called  the  Ciceronian  age,  was  fol- 
lowed closely  by  one,  the  Augustan,  during  which 
poetry  took  the  lead  in  cultivation  and  gave  a 
higher    literary    distinction    to    the    time.      Its 

Virgil.         greatest   name   is   that   of   Virgil,    "the   Roman 
B.  C.  70-19   °  %  ... 

Homer,"  writer  of  the  one  heroic  epic  that  is  ever 

coupled  with  the  Iliad  in  the  categories  of  narra- 
tive verse.  Of  the  right  of  Virgil  to  a  place  in  the 
small  list  of  the  supreme  poets  of  the  world  there 
B.°G6s-8  ls  seldom  any  dispute.  "It  is  to  Virgil  and  Horace 
that  the  Augustan  era  owes  its  rank  among  the 
great  eras  of  poetry.  Virgil  is  the  exponent  of  its 
highest  hopes  and  ideas.  In  the  spheres  of  gov- 
ernment, of  national  and  religious  feeling,  of  all 


Julius  Caesar 

From  Bust  in  Museum,  Naples 


Mark  Antony 

From  Bust  in  the  Louvre 


Augustus 

Bust  in  Vatican 


Virgil 

Bust  in  the  Capitol,  Rome 


Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch  199 

the  finer  influences  of  nature  and  human  relation-  W.Y.Sdiar 
ship,  it  was  through  him  that  the  most  searching,  ploets of\Z 
the  most  idealizing,  and  the  most  enduring  revela-  Au^ustan 
tion  was  made.     It  was  in  him,   too,   that  the 
national  literature,  after  a  century  and  a  half  of 
effort,  attained  its  final  perfection.     But,  for  our 
knowledge  of  the  actual  life  of  the  time,  of  its 
manners  and  humors,  of  its  gayety  on  the  surface 
and  of  some  of  its  deeper  currents  of  serious  feel- 
ing, we  must  go  to  another  representative  of  the 
age.     .     .     .     He  [Horace]  is  at  once  the  lyrical 
poet,  with  heart  and  imagination  responsive  to 
the  deeper  meaning  and  lighter  amusements  of 
life,  and  the  satirist,  the  moralist,  and  the  literary 
critic  of  the  age." 

In  the  prose  literature  of  the  Augustan  age 
Livy's  elaborate  history  of  Rome,  from  the  Uvy  v  c 
founding  of  the  city  till  his  own  day,  was  the  one  S9-A.  ft.  17 
greatly  important  work.  It  was  divided  into  an 
hundred  and  forty-two  books,  of  which  thirty-five 
only,  or  a  fourth  of  the  whole,  have  been  pre- 
served. The  books  saved,  which  repeat  the  leg- 
ends of  an  early  time,  are  probably  the  least 
valuable  parts  of  the  work;  but  Livy,  it  is 
evident,  was  not  critical  of  the  sources  from 
which  he  drew,  for  any  period,  caring  more  for  the 
literary  quality  of  his  narrative,  and  its  lively 
effect,  than  for  accuracy  in  the  statements  he 
made. 

More  valuable  than  the  surviving  portions  of 
Livy's  history  are  the  fragments  that  have  come 
down  from  the  one  other  classic  Roman  historian, 


200  Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch 

Tacitus.  Tacitus,  who  came  later  by  a  hundred  years,  and 
who  wrote  the  history  of  the  first  century  of  the 
empire,  down  to  the  reign  of  Domitian;  "an 
immortal  work,"  says  Gibbon,  "every  sentence  of 
which  is  pregnant  with  the  deepest  observations 
and  the  most  lively  images." 

In  the  interval  between  Livy  and  Tacitus,  the 
literary  names   of  most  eminence   are   those  of 
Seneca,  the  courtier-philosopher,  the  millionaire 
stoic  moralist,  tutor  of  Nero  as  a  boy,  his  minister 
when  the  boy  became  emperor,  his  victim  when 
boundless  power  had  maddened  the  grown  man; 
Bec.C4(?)-    and  Pliny  the  Elder,  whose  encyclopaedic  com- 
A.  D.  6s       pilation  of  the  scientific  knowledge  of  his  age,  in 
thirty-seven  books  of  Natural  History,  throws  the 
EidTr.AD.  best  possible  light  on  the  learning  of  those  days. 
23-79  Seneca  took  his  own  life  at  Nero's  command; 

Pliny  fell  a  victim  to  his  scientific  zeal,  which 
drew  him  into  the  fiery  circle  of  volcanic  dis- 
charges from  Mount  Vesuvius,  where  he  watched 
the  overwhelming  of  Pompeii  and  Herculaneum 
until  he  shared  their  fate. 

By  this  time  the  gospel  of  Christianity  had  been 
carried  into  the  heart  of  the  Roman  world,  and 
the  name  that  is  above  all  other  names  in  history 
is  waiting  to  be  taken  into  our  list.    Whether  as  a 
human  character  or  one  more  than  human,  Jesus, 
the   Christ,    is    supreme   in    his    perfections   and 
Jesus,  the     supreme  in  the  historical  importance  of  his  few 
???a  nC"  years  °f  teaching  in  Judea.    His  birth  was  in  the 
3o(?)  '         reign  of  Augustus,  the  first  of  the  Roman  em- 
perors;    his    crucifixion   in    that    of    the    second 


Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch  201 

emperor,  Tiberius.    Peter,  the  chief  of  hlo  twelve 
immediate  disciples  and  first  apostles,  is  believed 
to  have  been  the  founder  of  the  Christian  church 
at  Rome,  which  grew  to  so  much  influence  in  the 
reign  of  Nero  that  the  mad  despot  attempted  to 
strike  it  down.    According  to  the  traditions  of  the     t-   eter 
church,  Peter  perished  in  Nero's  persecution,  and 
with  him  Paul,  "the  apostle  to  the  Gentiles," 
greatest   of   Christian   missionaries,   who  led   in 
labors  which,  already,  had  planted  the  Christian  St.  Paul 
church  widely  throughout  Asia  Minor  and  Greece. 
But  the  impression  that  Christianity  had  made 
on  the  Roman  people  was  very  slight  as  yet. 
Speaking  generally,  they  had  no  religious  belief. 
They  had  lost  that  of  the  old  mythology  and 
accepted  nothing  in  its  place.     Spiritual-minded, 
thoughtful  men  found  a  substitute  for  religion  in 
the  stoic  philosophy,  which  spiritualizes  morality  ~&°™an 
to  the  last  degree.    As  a  doctrine  of  life,  stoicism 
is  "the  acted  consciousness  of  an  eternal  superi- 
ority in  the  soul  of  man  to  all  the  conditions  of  its 
existence  in  a  body  of  clay."     "Sovereignty  of  ^ai\"^'- 
spirit  over  flesh,  of  reason  over  passion,  is  the  tudeof 
surpassing  attainment  through  moral  discipline,  pp  I3.I5  ' 
in  the  stoic  view."     This   spiritualized,   almost 
religious  morality  had  been  taught  in  Rome  by 
many  of  the  Greek  disciples  of  Zeno  for  nearly 
three  centuries,  and  had  been  winning  the  better 
minds  of  late  years  very  fast.     Seneca  gave  it  a 
strong  impulse,  no  doubt,  by  his  excellent  dis-  Epictetus. 
courses,  and  Epictetus,  the  Phrygian  freedman,   Ist  centuy 
or  freed  slave,  must  have  given  it  more.    It  bore  afterChnst 


202 


Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch 


Marcus 
Aurelius 
Antoninus. 
A.  D.  121- 
1S0 


Larned, 
A  Multi- 
tude of 
Counsellors 


Vespasian. 
A.  D.  9-79 


Titus.  A.D. 
4o(?)-8i 


its  noblest  fruit  in  the  next  century,  when  it  gave 
Rome  an  emperor  whose  peer  in  nobility  of 
character  and  elevation  of  mind  is  hardly  to  be 
found  among  the  occupants  of  thrones.  Marcus 
Aurelius,  the  emperor, — absolute  master  of  the 
Roman  world, — and  Epictetus,  the  liberated 
slave,  are  the  two  perfect  exponents  of  stoicism, 
illustrating,  in  the  extremest  opposition  of  cir- 
cumstances, the  wisdom  it  could  impart,  the 
spirit  it  could  cultivate,  the  life  it  could  direct. 
"The  stoic  creed  has  influenced  morals  a  thousand 
times  more  through  the  pregnant  injunctions  and 
examples  of  these  two  men,  the  slave  and  the 
emperor,  than  through  the  logic  of  all  its  philoso- 
phers." 

Marcus  Aurelius  was  the  last  in  a  series  of  good 
rulers  who  gave  happiness  to  the  empire  for  a 
century,  with  but  one  interruption,  when  the 
hateful  Domitian  held  the  throne.  The  series 
began  with  Vespasian,  whose  soldierly  virtues 
were  crude  but  genuine,  the  growth  of  a  nature 
as  simple  as  it  was  strong.  By  its  simplicity  as 
well  as  by  its  strength  it  saved  him  from  the 
intoxications  of  imperial  power.  His  son  Titus 
reigned  too  briefly  to  show  fully  why  it  was  that 
he  was  called  "the  delight  of  mankind;"  but  long 
enough  to  give  evidence  of  exalted  motives  in  the 
exercise  of  his  great  sovereignty,  and  a  sincere 
desire  to  make  it  serviceable  to  the  public  weal. 
That  Domitian  was  the  brother  of  Titus  and  the 
son  of  Vespasian  is  a  fact  hard  to  understand. 

After    the    bloody    interval    which    Domitian 


Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch  203 

introduced,  and  the  short  reign  of  the  aged  Nerva, 
came  Trajan,  bringing  again  the  firm  hand  of  a  Trajan. 
strong  soldier  to  the  helm  of  the  half-wrecked 
state.  He  had  been  deliberately  chosen  for  suc- 
cession to  the  throne,  from  among  the  military 
commanders  of  the  day,  and  no  mistake  was 
made  in  the  choice.  He  erred  in  resuming  wars  of 
conquest,  extending  the  bounds  of  an  empire 
already  too  large;  but  he  restored  the  weakened 
authority  of  government,  and  set  a  manly  and 
wholesome  example  of  character  and  life.  He 
was  devoid  of  jealousy  and  malice,  straightfor- 
ward and  open  in  his  dealings  with  men. 

His  successor,  Hadrian,  made  so  by  his  choice  Hadrian. 
and  adoption,  was  not  his  equal  in  virile  qualities,  A-D-76-i38 
but  a  sagacious  and  accomplished  sovereign, — 
wise  enough  to  relinquish  the  useless  conquests  of 
Trajan,  and  more  careful  to  acquaint  himself  with 
every  part  of  his  dominion  than  any  other  em- 
peror had  been.  If  he  showed  degeneration  in 
his  later  years,  it  seems  to  have  been  the  conse- 
quence of  a  tormenting  disease. 

Again  by  adoption,  the  scepter  was  given,  after 
Hadrian,  to  a  singularly  good  man,  Antoninus  Antoninus 
Pius,  whose  long  reign  is  "one  of  those  happy  ggUS6A"D" 
periods  that  have  no  history.     An  almost  un- 
broken   peace    reigned    at    home    and    abroad. 
Taxes  were  lightened,  calamities  relieved,  infor-  ra'r>  seekers 
mers  discouraged;   confiscations  were  rare,  plots  AjterGod 
and  executions  were  almost  unknown.    Through- 
out the   whole   extent  of  his  vast  domain   the 
people  loved  and  valued  their  emperor,  and  the 


204 


Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch 


Diocletian. 
A.  D.  24s- 
313 


Constan- 
tine.    A.D. 
272-337 


emperor's  one  aim  was  to  further  the  happiness  of 
his  people."  As  the  son  by  adoption  and  the 
chosen  successor  of  this  excellent  sovereign, 
Marcus  Aurelius  Antoninus  was  reared  in  virtue, 
and  all  his  fine  aptitudes  were  cultivated,  by 
example  and  by  teaching,  to  make  him  "the 
noblest  Roman  of  them  all." 

After  Marcus  Aurelius,  there  are  few  emperors 
of  marked  ability  or  character,  and  none  of 
notable  distinction,  till  we  pass  a  full  century  and 
come  to  Diocletian,  the  reorganizer  of  the  empire, 
by  a  new  constitution,  which  cannot  be  said  to 
have  checked  its  decline,  but  which,  by  dividing 
and  re-dividing  the  sovereignty,  augmented  dis- 
orders and  hastened  the  inevitable  dissolution. 
As  long  as  Diocletian  kept  his  colleagues  in  sub- 
ordination by  his  dominating  personality  the  new 
system  worked  well;  but  when  he  wearied  of 
greatness  and  power,  and  withdrew  to  private 
life,  an  explosion  of  jealous  rivalries  was  not  long 
delayed. 

Years  of  civil  war  fused  the  empire  into  unity 
again,  for  a  time,  with  Constantine,  the  craftiest 
and  most  determined  of  the  contestants,  in  sole 
possession  of  the  throne.  Because  this  successful 
adventurer  was  shrewd  enough  to  see  how  power- 
ful a  party  the  Christians  had  become,  and 
secured  their  support  by  a  nominal  "conversion" 
to  the  Christian  faith,  giving  it  thereby  a  new 
footing  in  the  Roman  world,  he  is  frequently  mis- 
named "the  Great."  In  a  certain  manner  he  was 
able,  but  he  was  neither  great  nor  good.    How  is 


Tacitus 

From  an  Antique  Bust 


Marcus  Aurelius 

Bust  in  Capitol,  Rome 


Trajan 

Bust  in  the  Vatican 


Antoninus  Pius 

Bust  in  British  Museum 


Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch  205 

it  possible  to  believe  in  the  sincerity  of  his  profes- 
sion of  the  religion  of  Christ,  when  his  after  life 
was  full  of  such  hideous  crimes  of  suspicious 
jealousy  as  the  execution  of  a  son,  a  sister,  a  wife, 
a  nephew,  and  others  of  his  own  kin?  His  favor 
was  simply  corrupting  to  the  Christian  church. 
Every  account  of  his  reign  discloses  the  rankness 
of  hypocrisy  that  was  bred  among  the  priests  and 
professed  Christians  of  the  imperial  court.  To 
quote  Neander,  "even  Eusebius,  the  panegyrist 
of  Constantine,  blinded  as  he  was  by  the  splendor  G,e,*"  Jr' 
which    the    latter    had    cast   over   the   outward  H.ist%y°f 

11111  1  •         1  *  e  Chris- 

church,  although  he  would  gladly  say  nothing  but  tian  Reii- 
good  of  his  hero,  yet  even  he  is  obliged  to  reckon  Gj™.^ 
among  the  grievous  evils  of  this  period,  of  which   (Bohn)3:39 
he  was  an  eye-witness,  the  indescribable  hypoc- 
risy of  those  who  gave  themselves  out  as  Chris- 
tians merely  for  temporary  advantage." 

That  Julian,  Constantine's  nephew,  turned 
with  disgust  from  the  kind  of  Christianity  that  he 
saw  at  the  court  in  which  he  was  reared,  can  be  aId^i- 
no  matter  of  wonder,  for  he  was  a  man  of  sincerity  363 
and  serious  mind.  It  seems  probable  that  the 
teachings  of  Jesus  would  have  been  acceptable  to 
Julian  if  they  had  reached  him  in  their  purity  and 
truth.  In  preferring  the  philosophic  paganism 
that  held  its  ground  still  in  the  Greek  schools,  and 
in  endeavoring,  when  he  came  to  the  throne,  to 
employ  it  as  a  means  of  moral  purification  and 
elevation,  he  was  less  an  "apostate," — less 
deserving  of  the  stigma  of  that  appellation, — than 
Constantine  and  the  sons  of  Constantine,  who 


206  Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch 

debased  the  Christian  church  and  dishonored  the 
Christian  name. 

To  say  that  the  church  was  debased  by  the  cor- 
ruptions and  hypocrisies  that  surrounded  the 
imperial  court  is  not  to  say  that  it  was  depraved 
throughout.  An  abundance  of  its  true  spirit  was 
kept  in  life  yet,  and  some  of  the  greatest  minds 
ever  dedicated  to  its  service  were  employed  upon 
a.d.296(?)  the  problems  of  Christian  belief  and  Christian 
373  conduct  in  these  very  times.     If  dogmas  were 

more  considered  than  principles  by  "the  Fathers" 
of  the  fourth  century,  nevertheless  the  aim  of 
Christ-likeness  in  life  was  an  evident  inspiration 
of  most  that  they  thought   and   wrote.     Even 
329-379       Athanasius,  the  theological  warrior  of  the  church, 
implacable  enemy  of  Arianism,  "father  of  ortho- 
tomySA.D.    doxy,"  who  fought  unitarianism  out  and  trini- 
347W-407    tarianism  into  the  prevailing  creed,  and  kept  it 
there,  was  more  than  the  partisan  of  a  dogma  in 
|epmeo(?)  what  he  did.     So,  too,  were  Basil,  called  "the 
420  Great,"     Chrysostom,     "the     golden-mouthed," 

Jerome,  who  gave  the  Vulgate  translation  of  the 
Augustine.    g^  to  tjie  Latin  world,  and  Augustine,  who 

430  stands   first   among   "the   Fathers"    in   modern 

esteem.  So,  too,  was  Ulfilas,  the  Arian  mission- 
ary, who  carried  that  condemned  doctrine  of 
Christianity  to  the  Goths,  and  gave  them  the 
Bible  in  their  own  language,  some  extant  frag- 

umias.        ments  of  which  afford  all  that  is  known  of  the 

38l  '3"~    ancient  Gothic  speech. 

Of  public  personages  in  the  later  years  of  the 
decaying  empire  there  are  not  more  than  three 


Chief  Characters  of  the  Second  Epoch  207 

who  seem  to  merit  a  place  in  this  selected  gallery  ^        . 

•  /-1         1  i  -r>  1      Theodosius 

of  chief  characters  in  the  Greek  and  Roman  epoch  A.D.346C?) 

of  history.    They  are  Theodosius,  the  last  sover-  "39S 

eign    who    ruled    the    whole    empire    of    Rome; 

Stilicho,  the  able  statesman  and  valiant  soldier, 

of  Vandal  birth,  who  fought  Alaric  the  Visigoth,  Stilicho. 

resisting  the  doom  of  the  worthless  imperial  gov-  _408'3     ' 

ernmeht  in  the  west  till  it  put  him  to  death;   and 

Alaric  himself,  the  first  of  all  the  enemies  of  Rome, 

since  the  Gauls,  to  break  her  gates,  to  enter  her  376(?)"..4i0* 

streets  as  a  victor,  and  despoil  her  with  barbaric 

greed. 


CHAPTER  V 

FROM  THE  AGE   OF   XERXES  TO  THE 
AGE  OF  HANNIBAL 

(B.  C.  480  to  200) 

The  Greeks:  The  rebuilding  of  Athens. — The  Confederacy  of  Delos. — 
Despotic  use  of  Athenian  power. — The  Age  of  Pericles. — The  Peloponnesian 
war. — Triumph  of  the  enemies  of  Athens. — Decay  of  the  Persian  empire. — ■ 
Retreat  of  the  Ten  Thousand. — Breaking  of  the  Spartan  yoke  by  Thebes. — 
Subjugation  of  Greece  by  Philip  of  Macedon.  The  Macedonian  Empire: 
Overthrow  of  the  Persian  empire  by  Alexander. — Great  results  from  his  con- 
quests.— Division  of  his  dominions  after  his  death. — The  Syrian  monarchy 
of  Seleucus. — The  new  Egyptian  kingdom  of  the  Ptolemies. — Degeneracy  of 
the  Greeks  at  home. — Their  activity  and  influence  in  the  field  of  the  Mace- 
donian conquests. — Alexandria. — The  Jews  of  the  "diaspora."  India:  The 
kingdom  of  Magadha. — Asoka. — Establishment  of  Buddhism. — Evolution 
of  Hinduism.  The  Roman  Republic:  Roman  subjugation  of  all  Italy. — War 
with  Pyrrhus. — The  Punic  wars. — Hannibal  in  Italy. — Fall  of  Carthage. 

In  this  period,  the  predominance  in  history  of 
the  races  of  Europe  over  the  races  of  Asia  and 
Africa, — of  the  peoples  of  Aryan  speech  over  the 
peoples  of  Semitic  speech, — foreshadowed  in  the 
^eginnmg  fai[ure  Qf  ^e  persian  invasions  of  Greece,  was 
European  made  complete  and  final  by  the  Macedonian  over- 
throw of  the  Persian  empire  and  by  the  Roman 
destruction  of  Carthage.  It  is  the  period  of  the 
first  profoundly  revolutionary  change  that  history 
discloses  to  us,  in  the  processes  and  the  product 
of  the  civilization  of  mankind. 

Greece 

The  war  of  the  Greeks  with  the  Persians  had 
been  glorious  for  the  Athenians,  and  all  could  see 
that  Greece  had  been  saved  by  their  spirit  and 
their  intelligence  much  more  than  by  the  valor  of 

208 


Athens  and  the  Delian  League  209 

Sparta  and  other  states.  But  they  were  in  a  woe- 
ful condition,  with  their  city  destroyed  and  their 
families  without  homes.  Wasting  no  time  in 
lamentations,  they  rebuilt  the  town,  stretched  its 
walls  to  a  wider  circuit,  and  fortified  it  more 
strongly  than  before,  under  the  lead  of  the  saga- 
cious Themistocles.  Their  neighbors  were  meanly 
jealous,  and  Sparta  made  attempts  to  interfere 
with  the  building  of  the  walls;  but  Themistocles  f^rThe 
baffled  them  cunningly,  and  the  new  Athens  rose  Persian 
proudly  out  of  the  ashes  of  the  old. 

The  Ionian  islands  and  towns  of  Asia  Minor 
(which  had  broken  the  Persian  yoke)  now  recog- 
nized the  superiority  of  Athens,  and  a  league  was 
formed  among  them,  which  held  the  meetings  of 
its  deputies  and  kept  its  treasury  in  the  temple  of 
Apollo  on  the  sacred  island  of  Delos;  for  which 
reason  it  was  called  the  Confederacy  of  Delos,  or 
the  Delian  League.  The  Peloponnesian  states  J^  °ehan 
formed  a  looser  rival  league  under  the  headship  of 
Sparta.  The  Confederacy  of  Delos  was  in  sym- 
pathy with  popular  governments  and  popular 
parties  everywhere,  while  the  Spartans  and  their 
following  favored  oligarchies  and  aristocratic 
parties.  There  were  many  occasions  for  hostility 
between  the  two. 

The  Athenians,  at  the  head  of  their  confed- 
eracy, were  strong,  until  they  impaired  their 
power  by  using  it  in  tyrannical  ways.  Many 
lesser  states  in  the  league  were  unwise  enough  to 
commute,  in  money  payments,  the  contribution 
of  ships  and  men  which  they  had  pledged  them- 


210  From  Xerxes  to  Hannibal 

selves  to  make  to  the  common  naval  force.  This 
gave  Athens  the  power  to  use  that  force  despot- 
ically, as  her  own,  and  she  did  not  scruple  to 
exercise  the  power.    The  confederacy  was  soon  a 

Despotical 

ascendancy  name;   the  states  torming  it  were  no  longer  allies 
of  Athens     Qf  Athens,  but  her  subjects ;  she  ruled  them  as  the 
sovereign  of  an  empire,  and  her  rule  was  neither 
generous  nor  just.     Thereby  the  double  tie  of 
kinship  and  of  interest  which  might  have  bound 
the  whole  circle  of  Ionian  states  to  her  fortunes 
and  herself  was  destroyed  by  her  own  acts.    Pro- 
voking the  hatred  of  her  allies  and  challenging  the 
jealous  fear  of  her  rivals,  Athens  had  many  foes. 
At  the  same  time  a  dangerous  change  in  the 
character    of    her    democratic    institutions    was 
begun,  produced  especially  by  the  institution  of 
popular  jury-courts,  before  which  prosecutions  of 
every  kind  were  tried,  the  citizens  who  consti- 
tuted the  courts  acting  as  jury  and  judge  at  once. 
This   gave   them    a   valuable    training,    without 
doubt,  and  helped  to  raise  the  common  standard 
Growth  of    of  intelligence  among  the  Athenians  so  high;  but 
demagog-     it  did  unquestionably  tend  also  to  demoralizations 
uery  that  were  ruinous  in  the  end.    The  jury  service, 

slightly  paid,  fell  more  and  more  to  an  unworthy 
class,  made  up  of  idlers  or  intriguers.  Party  feel- 
ing and  popular  passions  gained  an  increasing 
influence  over  the  juries,  and  demagogues 
acquired  anincreasing  skill  in  making  use  of  them. 
But  these  evils  were  scarcely  more  than  in  their 
seed  during  the  great  period  of  "Athenian 
Empire,"  as  it  is  sometimes  called,  and  every- 


The  Golden  Age  of  Athens  211 

thine  within  its  bounds  was  suffused  with  the  Brilliancy 

of  the 

shining  splendor  of  that  matchless  half-century  of  period 
time.    The  genius  of  this  little  Ionic  state  was 
stimulated    to    amazing   achievements    in    every 
intellectual  field.     .'Eschylus,  Sophocles,  Euripi-  Dramatists 
des,   Aristophanes,    within    a    single   generation, 
crowded   Athenian   literature   with   the   master- 
pieces of  classic  drama.     Pheidias  and  his  com- 
panions crowned  the  Acropolis  and  filled  the  city  Artists 
with  works  that  have  been  the  models  in  art  for 
all  ages  since.    Socrates  began  the  quizzing  which 
turned    philosophy    into    honest    truth-seeking  ^ 
paths,  and  Plato  listened  to  him  and  was  in- 
structed for  his  mission.     Thucydides  watched 

«i  •  j ^j    Historians 

events  with  sagacious  young  eyes,  and  prepared 
his  pen  for  the  chronicling  of  them;  while  Herodo- 
tus, pausing   at  Athens   from   his   wide    travels, 
matured  the  knowledge  he  had  gathered  up  and 
perfected  it  for  his  final  work.    Over  all  of  them  Pericles 
came  Pericles  to  preside  and  rule,  not  as  a  master,  Plutarch 
or  "tyrant,"  but  as  leader,  guide,  patron,  princely  Pericles 
republican, — statesman  and  politician  in  one.         Evelyn 
The  period  of  the  ascendancy  of  Pericles  was  PeT°iel 
the   "golden   age"   of  Athenian   prosperity  and 
power,    both    material    and    intellectual.      The 
beginning  of  the  end  of  it  was  reached  a  little 
before  he   died,  when  the  long-threatened  war  The 
between  Athens  and  the  Peloponnesian  league,  nesianwar. 
led  by  Sparta,  broke  out.     If  Athens  had  then  431-404 
possessed  the  good  will  of  the  cities  of  her  own 
league,  and  if  her  citizens  had  retained  their  old 
sobriety   and    intelligence,    she   might   have   tri- 


B.  C.  429 


212  From  Xerxes  to  Hannibal 

umphed  in  the  war;  for  she  was  all  powerful  at 
sea  and  fortified  almost  invincibly  against  attacks 
by  land.  But  the  subject  states,  called  allies, 
were  hostile,  for  the  most  part,  and  helped  the 
enemy  by  their  revolts,  while  the  death  of  Pericles 
let  loose  on  the  people  a  swarm  of  demagogues 
who  flattered  and  deluded  them,  and  baffled  the 
wiser  and  more  honest,  whose  counsels  and 
leadership  might  have  given  them  success. 

The  fatal  folly  of  the  long  war  was  an  expedi- 
tion against  the  distant  city  of  Syracuse  (founded 
in  Sicily,  in  the  eighth  century  B.  C,  by  Greek 
expedition  colonists  from  Corinth),  into  which  the  Athenians 
s^cuse  were  ent^cec^  by  the  restless  and  unscrupulous 
b.  c.  ambition  of  Alcibiades.    The  entire  force  sent  to 

Sicily  perished  there,  and  the  strength  and  spirit 
of  Athens  were  sapped  by  the  fearful  calamity. 
She  maintained  the  war,  however,  until  404  B.C., 
when,  having  lost  her  fleet  in  the  decisive  battle  of 
./Egospotami,  and  being  blockaded  by  sea  and 
land,  the  city  was  surrendered  to  the  Spartan 
general  Lysander.  Her  walls  and  fortifications 
Athens.  were  then  destroyed  and  her  democratic  govern- 
B.  c.  404  ment  was  overthrown,  giving  place  to  an  oli- 
garchy known  as  the  "thirty  tyrants."  The 
thirty  tyrants  were  soon  suppressed,  and  Athens, 
in  time,  rose  somewhat  from  her  deep  humilia- 
tion, but  never  again  to  much  political  power  in 
Greece.  In  intellect  and  cultivation,  however, 
the  superiority  of  the  Attic  state  was  maintained, 
and  its  greatest  productions  in  philosophy  and 
eloquence  were  yet  to  be  given  to  the  world. 


Fatal 


Decline  of  the  Persian  Empire  213 

The  Persian  Empire 

Meantime,  the  Persian  empire  had  been  under- 
going a  rapid  process  of  disorganization  and 
decline.  There  was  no  strength  of  spirit  in 
Xerxes  to  overcome  the  disastrous  effect,  on  his 
subjects  and  on  himself,  of  the  shameful  failure 
he  had  made  in  Greece.  He  sank  into  the  char- 
acter of  the  typical  despot  of  the  east,  licentious,  D;sorsani2- 

.    .  J  l  r  '  '    ation  and 

suspicious,  murderous,  malevolent,  feared  and  decline 
hated  in  an  equal  degree.  He  was  assassinated  in 
465  B.  C.  by  the  captain  of  his  guard,  who  placed 
his  youngest  son,  Artaxerxes  I.,  on  the  throne. 
This  prince,  who  had  the  weakness  without  the 
wickedness  of  his  father,  reigned  forty  years,  dur- 
ing which  the  force  of  authority  in  government 
was  lost.  Others  committed  violences  and  crimes, 
if  he  did  not,  and  the  conditions  of  disorder  and 
laxity  increased.  In  the  midst  of  his  reign  an- 
other collision  with  the  Athenians  was  brought  ^^th 
about  by  the  latter,  who  gave  help  to  an  insurrec-  %thAns- 
tion  in  Egypt,  and  who  suffered  there  a  serious  449 
defeat.  But  in  the  end  the  Persians  were  beaten 
so  badly,  in  a  great  sea  fight,  off  the  Cyprian 
coast,  that  they  accepted  an  inglorious  peace, 
celebrated  in  the  history  of  Athens  as  "the  Peace 
of  Cimon"  or  "the  Peace  of  Callias,"  being  some- 
times named  from  Callias,  the  negotiator,  and 
sometimes  from  Cimon,  who  commanded  in  the 
war. 

The  death  of  Artaxerxes  I.  in  425  B.  C.  was  fol- 
lowed within  a  year  by  two  changes  on  the  throne 
produced  by  murder.    Ochus,  an  illegitimate  son 


214 


Egypt 
regains  in- 
dependence 
B.  C.  405 


Greek  mer- 
cenaries in 
Persia. 
B.  C.  401 


Retreat  of 
the  Ten 

Thousand 


Xenophon, 
Anabasis 


From  Xerxes  to  Hannibal 

of  Artaxerxes,  who  then  secured  it,  taking  the 
name  of  Darius  Nothus,  reigned  twenty  years. 
They  were  years  of  incessant  disturbance  in  all 
parts  of  the  weakened  realm.  Egypt  regained  its 
independence,  and  was  ruled  for  half  a  century 
by  a  series  of  native  kings.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  fatal  Peloponnesian  war  in  Greece  gave  the 
Persian  satraps  in  Asia  Minor  an  opportunity  to 
resubjugate  the  Greek  cities  of  the  Ionian  coast. 
Darius  Nothus  died  in  405  B.  C,  and  was  suc- 
ceeded by  his  eldest  son,  Artaxerxes  II.  A 
younger  son,  Cyrus,  who  was  satrap  of  Lydia,  had 
expected  to  receive  the  crown,  and  determined  to 
take  it  by  force.  He  enlisted  an  army  of  Greek 
mercenaries,  with  which,  in  the  spring  of  401 
B.  C,  he  set  forth  from  Sardis  to  march  to  Susa, 
his  brother's  capital.  At  Cunaxa,  in  Babylonia, 
he  was  surprised,  defeated  and  slain.  The  Greeks 
lost  their  commander  in  the  fight,  and  found 
themselves  placed  dangerously,  in  a  hostile, 
strange  country,  with  no  leader  and  no  object  to 
pursue.  With  the  Greek  capacity  for  self-govern- 
ment, they  chose  a  general  from  their  ranks,  the 
Athenian,  Xenophon  (who  wrote  several  import- 
ant books  in  after  life),  and  under  his  leadership 
they  made  the  long  retreat — the  famous  "Retreat 
of  the  Ten  Thousand  " — from  the  lower  Euphra- 
tes to  the  Euxine,  thence  to  the  Bosporus  and  to 
Greece,  having  found  that  the  Persian  empire 
was  already  a  shell.  In  Greece,  however,  this 
discovery  of  Persian  decay  was  not  realized  at 
once,  and  Sparta,  then  supreme,  shut  her  gates 


Spartan  Domination  215 

against  the  returning  adventurers,  through  fear  of 
offending  the  "Great  King."  They  were  driven 
to  enter  the  service  of  a  Thracian  prince. 

Such  fears  soon  gave  way,  when  the  shrewd 
Greeks  estimated  the  full  significance  of  what 
Xenophon  and  his  men  had  brought  to  light,  and 
saw  the  hollowness  of  the  fancied  Persian  power. 
Sparta  became  ashamed  of  having  abandoned  the  Revejat;on 
Greek  cities  of  Asia  Minor  to  their  old  oppressors,  of  Pefsian 

decay 

as  she  did  after  breaking  the  strength  of  their 
protector,  Athens,  in  the  Peloponnesian  war. 
When,  therefore,  the  Persians  began  to  lay  siege 
to  the  coast  cities  which  resisted  them,  Sparta 
interfered,  with  spirit  enough  to  bring  about  a 
truce.  This  action  provoked  Artaxerxes,  the 
Persian  king,  to  assist  a  fugitive  Athenian  gen- 
eral, Conon,  in  preparing  an  armament  against 
Sparta;  whereupon  the  Spartans,  led  by  one  of  s  artan 
their  kings,  Agesilaus,  took  the  field  in  Ionia  with  campaign 
a  strong  army  and  carried  on  two  brilliant  cam-  AsiaMinor. 
paigns.  For  a  time,  Agesilaus  of  Sparta  seemed  B- c  39<5~ 
likely  to  anticipate  the  overthrow  of  the  Persian 
empire,  which  Alexander  of  Macedonia  accom- 
plished a  little  later;  but,  in  the  midst  of  his 
victories,  he  was  called  home  to  face  a  league 
which  Athens,  Thebes,  Corinth,  Argos,  and  some 
minor  states  had  formed,  to  resist  Spartan  oppres- 
sions in  Greece.  For  eight  years  then  there  was  a 
renewal  of  war  among  the  Greek  states,  Conon 
and  his  Persian  allies  assisting  the  league.    The  GJTk  . 

o  o  states  at 

war  was  ended  in  3  87  B.  C,  on  terms  substan-  war  again, 
tially  dictated  by  an  edict  of  the  Persian  king.  3s7  ' 39S" 


2l6 


From  Xerxes  to  Hannibal 


Deliver- 
ance of 
Thebes. 
B.  C.  379 


B.  C.  371 


Epaminon- 
das 


Rise  of 
Macedonia 


B.C.  338 

King  Philip 
and 

Demos- 
thenes 

Plutarch, 
Demos- 
thenes 


Athens  had  her  walls  rebuilt  and  her  independ- 
ence restored;  but  the  Ionian  Greeks  were  given 
up  to  Persia  once  more,  and  the  Greek  states  of 
the  peninsula  (except  Athens)  submitted  again  to 
the  Spartan  yoke. 

But  the  Spartan  domination  was  not  far  from 
its  end.  Thebes,  set  free  by  a  daring  stroke  and 
led  by  a  great  statesman  and  soldier,  Epaminon- 
das,  one  of  the  purest  and  noblest  patriots  named 
in  history,  fought  Sparta  for  eight  years,  until,  in 
a  momentous  battle  at  Leuctra,  the  Lacedaemo- 
nian despotism  was  ended  forever.  An  ascen- 
dancy in  Greek  affairs  then  passed  to  Thebes; 
but  it  lasted  only  till  the  death  of  Epaminondas. 

Meantime,  while  the  city-states  of  Hellas 
proper  had  been  wounding  and  weakening  one 
another  by  their  jealousies  and  wars,  the  semi- 
Greek  kingdom  of  Macedonia,  to  the  north  of 
them,  in  their  own  peninsula,  had  been  acquiring 
their  civilization  and  growing  strong.  And  now 
there  appeared  upon  its  throne  a  very  able  king, 
Philip,  who  took  advantage  of  their  divisions, 
interfered  in  their  affairs,  and  finally  made  a 
practical  conquest  of  the  whole  peninsula,  by  his 
victory  at  the  battle  of  Chaeronea.  At  Athens, 
the  great  orator  Demosthenes  had  exerted  him- 
self for  years  to  rouse  resistance  to  Philip.  His 
eloquence  failed  then,  but  it  has  served  the  world 
immortally  since,  by  delighting  and  instructing 
mankind. 

King  Philip  of  Macedonia  was  an  extraordinary 
man,  superior  in  capacity  and  strength  of  char- 


Philip  of  Macedon  217 

acter  to  Alexander,1^  his  more  famous  son.  The 
political  adroitness  with  which  he  mastered  the 
turbulent  Greek  states,  and  established  Mace- 
donia in  a  leadership  which  gave  it  much  of  the 
strength  and  prestige  of  Greece,  has  never  been  _ .,. 

•         iri-11  Philip  and 

surpassed.    His  son  received  from  him  that  legacy  his  son 
of  power,  for  use  in  conquests  beyond  Greece;  Alexander 
received   from   him,   moreover,   the   remarkable 
generals  he  had  picked  and  trained,  the  army  he 
had  organized,  the  invincible  "phalanx"  he  had 
invented,  and  received  them  all  prepared  with  TT 

'  .  r  Hogarth, 

direct  reference  to  the  very  project  of  eastern  Philip  and 
conquest  which  he  carried  out.     For  Philip  was  $J^£„ 
making  ready  to  invade  the  Persian  empire  when 
he  was  struck  down  by  an  assassin  in  his  forty- 
seventh  year. 

Conquests  and  Empire  of  Alexander 

Alexander,  mounting  the  throne  of  Macedonia 
on  the  death  of  his  father,  Philip,  found  barbarian 
neighbors  on  his  northern  frontier  to  chastise,  and 
revolts  in  Greece  to  overcome,  before  he  could 
take  up  his  father's  designs  against  the  crumbling 
great  empire  in  the  east.  Nearly  two  years  were 
employed  in  crushing  the  enemies  near  at  hand,  Destruc. 
which  he  did  with  ruthless  energy,  destroying  tion  of 
Thebes  completely  and  selling  its  inhabitants  as 
slaves.  Then,  in  the  early  spring  of  334  B.  C, 
leading  an  army  of  -30,000  foot  soldiers  and  £  000  invasion  of 

11  1        1  tt    11  /   1.        t\  Persian 

cavalry,    he   crossed    the   .Hellespont    (the   JJar-  empire. 

B   C   334 

danelles  of  modern  geography),  and  entered  the 
dominions  of  the  Persian  king.  In  his  first  en- 
counter with  Persian  forces,  at  the  small  river 


218 


From  Xerxes  to  Hannibal 


Grote, 
History  of 
Greece,  II- 
I2:ch.  xcii- 
xciv 


Granicus,  they  arrayed  their  troops  badly;  he 
confused  them  by  clever  tactics,  and  the  result 
to  them  was  a  disastrous  rout.  After  this  victory, 
Alexander  received  the  submission  of  most  of  the 
leading  cities  of  Asia  Minor,  but  met  resistance 
at  Miletus  and  Halicarnassus,  the  latter  of  which 
he  razed  to  the  ground.  A  Persian  fleet,  under  a 
Greek  commander,  Memnon,  gave  him  trouble, 
however,  in  the  ^Egean,  threatening  to  cut  him  off 
from  Europe  and  to  encourage  revolt  in  Greece. 
It  was  not  until  Memnon's  death,  in  the  spring  of 
333  B.  C,  that  he  felt  safe  in  undertaking  a  fur- 
ther advance. 

News  reached  him  in  the  summer  of  that  year 
that  the  Persian  monarch,  Darius  Codomannus, 
or  Darius  III.,  had  taken  the  field  against  him  in 
person,  and  was  moving  from  Babylon  into  Syria 
with  an  army  of  400,000  men.  Thereupon  Alex- 
ander pushed  forward  through  the  passes  of  the 
Taurus  range  of  mountains  into  Cilicia,  and 
awaited  the  approach  of  Darius.  The  two  armies 
issus.  b.  c.  came  together  in  November,  on  the  plain  of  Issus, 
near  the  head  of  the  gulf  of  that  name — the 
modern  Gulf  of  Iskanderun.  According  to  Greek 
writers  there  were  more  than  half  a  million  in  the 
Persian  host,  and  thirty  thousand  in  the  little 
army  of  the  Greeks.  Whatever  the  true  count 
may  have  been,  it  is  certain  that  the  disparity  in 
numbers  was  very  great.  But  the  mere  Persian 
mass,  badly  generaled,  counted  for  nothing 
against  Greek  discipline  and  valor,  handled  with 
the  fine  military  judgment  of  Alexander.    Crash- 


Battle  of 


Conquests  of  Alexander  219 

ing  through  one  wing,  he  disordered  the  whole, 
and  the  Persians  trampled  each  other  to  death  in 
the  frenzy  of  their  flight.  Darius  escaped,  but  his 
mother,  wife,  daughters  and  a  young  son  were  ^family 
left  in  the  hands  of  the  victor,  who  treated  them  of  Darius 
with  a  generosity  that  was  astonishing  to  all  who 
described  it  in  that  age  of  merciless  war. 

Alexander  assumed  at  once  the  title  of  King  of 
Persia  and  Lord  of  Asia;  but,  before  pursuing 
Darius  into  the  heart  of  the  vast  empire  he 
claimed,  he  spent  a  year  in  securing  the  remainder 
of  its  Mediterranean  coast.  Possession  of  the 
maritime  cities  of  Phoenicia  was  an  absolute 
necessity;  for  their  navy  had  been  his  most 
dangerous  enemy  from  the  first.  Unless  he 
became  its  master  he  could  not  hold  what  he  had 
won,  or  maintain  his  authority  in  Greece.  Byblus 
and  Sidon  submitted  to  him,  but  Tyre  would  not, 
on  the  terms  he  proposed,  and  the  obstinate  city  capture  of 
held  out  against  his  siege  for  seven  months.  Jsy2re'B'C 
When  taken  at  last  by  storm,  30,000  of  its  people 
were  sold  into  slavery,  and  a  new  population  was 
brought  into  the  town.  Gaza,  the  Philistine  city, 
was  equally  obstinate,  and  suffered  a  like  fate, 
after  a  siege  of  two  months.  Jerusalem  and  all 
Palestine  accepted  the  change  of  sovereign  and 
suffered  no  harm.  Egypt,  into  which  he  ad- 
vanced, did  the  same. 

While    in    Egypt,    Alexander    designed    and 
founded,  at  the  mouth  of  the  westernmost  branch  Alexander 
of  the  Nile,  the  notable  city  which  bears  his  name  in  Egypt 
to  this  day.     From  that  task  he  marched  west-  33I 


220  From  Xerxes  to  Hannibal 

ward,  along  the  north  African  coast,  into  Cyre- 
naica  (modern  Barca),  a  state  dominated  by  the 
flourishing  city  of  Cyrene,  which  Greek  colonists 
had  founded  about  three  hundred  years  before. 
Cyrene  sent  an  embassy  to  meet  him,  with  gifts 
and  offers  that  were  satisfactory,  and  his  march 
was  stopped.  The  western  limit  of  his  conquests 
had  been  reached.  Before  turning  back  to  the 
Nile,  he  went  two  hundred  miles  into  the  desert, 
to  visit  a  famous  sanctuary  and  oracle  of  Jupiter 
Ammon,  and  received  there  the  flattering  assur- 

apotheosis  ance  that  he  was  a  son  of  the  god.  From  this  time 
there  seems  to  have  been  a  growing  desire  in  him 
for  the  honors  of  a  demigod,  which  showed  itself 
first  in  mere  signs  of  expectation,  and  finally  in 
positive  claims. 

Early  in  the  spring  of  331  B.  C,  Alexander  left 
Egypt  and  returned  with  his  army  to  Tyre, 
whence,  a  few  months  later,  he  started  eastward, 
through  Syria  and  Mesopotamia,  to  find  Darius 
and  finish  the  fight  for  empire  with  that  hapless 
king.  Darius  met  him  near  the  village  of  Gauga- 
mela,  not  far  from  the  ruins  of  Nineveh,  and 

Battle  of      there,  on  the  1st  of  October,  the  final  battle  was 

Gaugamela  '  ' 

(Arbeia).  fought,  in  a  manner  and  with  results  that  differed 
little  from  those  displayed  at  Issus,  two  years 
before.  The  Persian  host  was  even  greater  than 
at  Issus,  the  panic-rout  more  frantic,  the  destruc- 
tion more  appalling.  Darius  escaped  again  and 
took  refuge  at  Ecbatana,  the  Median  capital, 
where  he  remained  undisturbed  until  the  follow- 
ing spring. 


B.C.  331 


Fall  of  Persian  Empire  of  Darius  221 

Meanwhile  Alexander  was  gathering  the  more 
important  fruits  of  his  victory  and  making  them 
secure.     The  battle  of  Gaugamela   (mistakenly- 
named  in  old  traditions  from  Arbela,  which  lay 
fifty  miles  distant  from  the  battle  ground)  was 
one  of  the  most  decisive  ever  fought.  It  ended  the  ,,  ,  ,  , 
Persian  empire,  and  left  little  more  for  Alexander  Persian 
to  do  than  to  go  over  the  ground  it  had  occupied  empire 
and  lay  his  hand  upon  its  parts.  This,  practically, 
was  the  work  of  the  next  four  years.    First  he  took 
possession  of  the  great  capital  cities  of  the  empire 
— Babylon,    Susa,    Persepolis,    and    Pasargada?, 
finding  enormous  treasures  in  each  and  enriching 
his  whole  army  with  the  spoils.    Then  he  pursued 
Darius,  who  fled  from  Ecbatana,  and  who,  when 
the  flight  became  hopeless,  was  murdered  by  his  Darius. 
own  guards.     This  was  in  the  summer  of  330.  B-  c-  330 
The  next  three  years  were  spent  by  Alexander  in 
the  provinces  of  Hyrcania,  Parthia,  Aria,  Bactria, 
Sogdiana,  and  Drangiana   (northeastern  Persia, 
Russian  Turkestan  and  Afghanistan  in  the  geog- 
raphy of  the  present  day),  settling  new  govern- 
ments, overcoming  some  resistance, — serious  no- 
where but  in  Sogdiana  (Bokhara), — and  founding  Macedoni- 
a  number  of  colonies  and  cities,  some  of  which,  colonies 
like   that   represented    by   modern   Merv,    have 
played  important  parts  in  history  since. 

In  reality,  the  Macedonian  had  now  subjugated 
the  Persian  empire  throughout  its  full  extent;  but 
the  claims  of  the  Persian  kings  included  a  nominal 
lordship  over  one  district  in  the  valley  of  the 
Indus,  and  Alexander  assumed  the  whole  claim. 


222 


From  Xerxes  to  Hannibal 


Alexander 
in  India. 
B.  C.  327- 
325 


Death  of 
Alexander 
at  Babylon 
B.  C.  323 


To  enforce  it,  he  fought  his  way  through  the 
tribes  in  the  mountains  east  of  Afghanistan.  He 
found  three  kingdoms  in  the  Punjab,  but  met 
resistance  in  only  one,  whose  king,  a  noble  prince 
named  Porus,  he  defeated  in  one  of  the  hardest 
fought  battles  of  his  whole  career.  From  the 
Punjab  he  was  eager  to  push  on  into  remoter 
Indian  regions,  of  which  he  heard  tempting 
accounts;  but  his  men  held  him  back.  They  had 
won  for  him  even  more  than  the  Persian  empire, 
and  he  was  compelled  to  be  content. 

Before  quitting  the  Indus,  Alexander  passed 
down  to  its  mouth,  and  sent  a  fleet  from  there  to 
explore  the  way  by  sea  to  the  Persian  Gulf, — a 
trade  route  which  does  not  seem  to  have  been 
previously  in  use.  Then  he  turned  his  march 
toward  Susa,  which  he  reached  in  the  spring  of 
324  B.  C.  through  such  hardships  of  the  march 
that  half  or  more  of  his  army  perished  on  the  way. 
A  year  later  he  proceeded  to  Babylon,  and  was 
reported  to  be  engaged  in  preparations  for  the 
conquest  of  Arabia,  but  was  stricken  with  a  fever 
in  the  midst  of  them  and  died,  after  a  brief  illness, 
on  the  13th  of  June,  323  B.  C. 

What  Alexander  would  have  made  of  the  vast 
empire  he  had  torn  from  the  Persian  kings,  had 
he  lived,  cannot  be  surmised.  He  had  done  al- 
most nothing  constructively  in  it  when  he  died. 
He  had  done  almost  nothing  to  show  that  he  had 
the  ability  of  statesmanship,  for  moulding  it  into 
some  unity  that  would  last.  Thus  far  he  had  been 
simply  a  conqueror,  and,  while  his  achievement  in 


P3 


X       a 


Alexander's  Death  223 

that  character  was  impressive  in  its  huge  propor-  Estimate  of 

tions,  the  resistance  he  had  encountered  had  been 

too  weak  for  any  test  of  surpassing  powers.    He 

had  torn  from  the  Persians  an  empire  which  went 

to  pieces  when  he  died.    That  seems  to  be  all  that 

we  can  reasonably  credit  to  him  in  what  he  did.  Qmse- 

The  greatness  of  the  consequences  that  came  from  ^utnc^ 

°  *■  _  from  his 

his  overturning  of  western  Asia,  and  flooding  it  conquests 
with  after-influences  from  Greece,  furnishes  no 
proper  measure  of  his  personal  greatness  as  an 
actor  in  the  production  of  the  cause.  There  are 
many  shining  figures  in  history  who  are  glorified 
by  light  reflected  back  from  ultimate  effects  of 
their  work,  more  than  by  any  real  splendor  in  the 
quality  of  the  work  itself.  To  some  extent,  at 
least,  Alexander,  called  "the  Great,"  is  one  of 
those. 

As  to  the  magnitude  of  the  results  that  flowed 
from    the   Greek   overthrow   of   Persian    power, 
affecting  the  whole  future  history  of  the  world, 
there  is  no  possible  dispute.     It  ended  the  First  the  second 
Era  of  Civilization  and  opened  the  Second.    How  EraofCivi- 

1  hzation 

it  did  so  will  appear  in  our  story  as  we  go  on. 

The  Successors  of  Alexander 

In  the  circumstances  of  the  empire  of  Alexan- 
der, its  breaking  was  inevitable  when  he  died.  He  ^^J^' 
left  an  infant  son  who  was  illegitimate;  he  had  an  Alexander's 
illegitimate   half-brother;     and    one   of   his    two  ch.v.-vh. 
wives — an   oriental   princess — bore   another   son 
three  months  after  his  death.     These  were  the 
possible  male  heirs  to  his  throne.    None  of  them 


224 


From  Xerxes  to  Hannibal 


Dividing 
the  empire 


commanded  the  allegiance  of  the  Macedonian 
army,  which  was  the  repository  of  his  purely 
military  power,  and  none  of  the  generals  of  the 
army  was  strong  enough  in  kingly  qualities  to 
make  himself  its  supreme  chief.  For  a  time  there 
was  a  nominal  regency  agreed  upon  among  the 
generals,  but  their  rival  ambitions  and  mutual 
jealousies  broke  it  down,  and  the  division  of  the 
empire  between  them  was  begun,  with  each  one 
intriguing  and  fighting  to  enlarge  his  share.  Most 
of  the  contestants  and  all  of  the  kindred  of  Alex- 
ander perished  in  these  struggles,  which  went  on 
through  forty  years.  The  final  outcome  of  the 
contest  was  (i)  the  establishment  of  one  import- 
ant kingdom  or  empire  in  Asia,  by  Seleucus 
Nicator,  who  had  not  been  distinguished  among 
the  officers  of  Alexander,  but  who  grasped  the 
larger  part  of  what  Alexander  left;  (2)  a  new 
kingdom  of  Egypt,  founded  by  one  of  the  ablest 
of  the  Alexandrian  commanders,  Ptolemy  Soter; 
(3)  the  settling  of  a  new  dynasty  on  the  throne  of 
the  original  Macedonian  kingdom,  in  northern 
Greece;  and  (4)  the  outcropping  of  a  number  of 
lesser  kingdoms  in  Asia  Minor  and  beyond  it, 
some  of  which  grew  to  a  transient  importance  in 
later  times. 

Until  about  the  middle  of  the  long  contest,  the 
prospects  of  Seleucus  seemed  small  compared 
with  those  of  another  among  the  Macedonian 
Antigonus  generals,  Antigonus  by  name,  who  overtopped  all 
his  competitors  in  power.  In  the  first  partitioning 
of  the  broken  empire,  Antigonus  had   received 


The  final 
outcome 


The  Successors  of  Alexander  225 

only   a   few  provinces  in  Asia  Minor;    but  he 
extended  his  authority,  in  the  course  of  twenty 
years,  until  he  aspired  to  the  supreme  sovereignty 
which  Alexander  had  possessed.    He  was  the  first 
of  the  contestants  (whom  the  Greeks  called  the 
"Diadochi"  or  "Successors"  of  Alexander)  who  ^p.^ 
assumed  the  title  of  king.    Another  who  figured  dochi 
conspicuously    for    years    in    the    struggle    was  L  sim_ 
Lysimachus,  whose  original  portion  of  the  spoils  achus 
of   empire   was   Thrace,    embracing   the    region 
between  Macedonia,  the  Danube  and  the  Black 
Sea.     He,  too,  widened  his  dominions,  until  all 
the  rich  states  in  the  west  of  Asia  Minor  came 
under  his  rule.    Lysimachus  and  Seleucus  (then 
established  in  a  somewhat  uncertain  kingship  at 
Babylon)  united  their  forces  against  Antigonus 
and  defeated  and  slew  him  in  a  great  battle  fought 
at  Ipsus,  in  Phrygia,  301  B.  C.  They  then  divided  ^attle  of 
the  dominions  of  Antigonus  between  themselves,  b.  c.  301 
Lysimachus    taking    most   of   Asia    Minor    and 
Seleucus   all   the   provinces   of  the   east.     This 
division  was   maintained  for  a  score  of  years, 
until  Lysimachus  provoked  an  attack  from  his 
old  ally,  Seleucus,  and,  in  his  turn,  suffered  over- 
throw and  death. 

Seleucus  was  now  the  sole  great  monarch  in 
western  Asia.  Nominally  he  had  recovered  the  archyof 
Asiatic  sovereignty  of  Alexander,  from  the  Hel-  Seleucas 
lespont  to  the  Indus;  but  the  region  of  real 
strength  in  his  government  seems  to  have  em- 
braced Syria,  Mesopotamia,  Babylonia,  parts  of 
Persia  and  parts  of  Asia  Minor.    All  along  the 


226 


From  Xerxes  to  Hannibal 


Minor 
principali- 
ties and 
kingdoms 


northern  border  of  Alexander's  conquest  there 
had  been  principalities  established,  some  by 
Gre~k  adventurers  and  some  by  Persian  grandees, 
which  acknowledged  very  little  subjection  to 
Seleucus  or  his  successor,  and  were  soon  petty 
kingdoms,  pursuing  independent  careers.  Such 
were  Bithynia,  Pergamum,  Pontus,  Armenia, 
Media  Atropatene,  Parthia  (which  corresponded 
very  nearly  to  the  modern  Persian  province  of 
Khorasan),  and  Bactria.  Nevertheless  the  Seleu- 
cid  empire — sometimes  called  the  Syrian  mon- 
archy— was  a  substantial  and  great  power  in  the 
eastern  world,  of  immense  historical  influence, 
throughout  the  third  century  before  Christ.  Its 
founder,  Seleucus  Nicator,  resigned  the  throne  to 
his  son,  Antiochus,  soon  after  he  had  overthrown 
Lysimachus,  and  went  into  Macedonia,  to  end  his 
days  in  his  native  land.  He  was  murdered  there 
in  the  following  year. 

The  Macedonian  or  Greek  kingdom  in  Egypt 
was  founded  more  quietly  and  more  securely  by 
Ptolemy  Soter,  a  singularly  prudent  as  well  as  an 
able  prince.  Ptolemy  was  not  carried  away  by 
the  lust  of  dominion  which  ruined  most  of  his 
domofthe    rivals.     Egypt  contented  him,  and  he  added  to 

Ptolemies 

the  ancient  kingdom  only  Cyrenaica,  at  the  west, 
and  Palestine,  at  the  east.  In  the  strifes  that 
raged  around  him,  among  the  Diadochi,  he  took 
little  more  part  than  was  necessary  for  his  own 
defense.  As  a  consequence,  he  transmitted  to  his 
son,  Ptolemy  Philadelphus,  a  very  solidly 
constructed    kingdom,      which     that    monarch 


The  Egyp- 
tian king- 


Greece  Under  the  Macedonians  227 

raised  to  preeminence  in  splendor  and  wealth. 

Greece  suffered  sorely  in  the  conflicts  of  the 
Diadochi,  who  strove  to  keep  each  other  from 
controlling   the   Macedonian   sovereignty   in   its 
original  seat.    That  sovereignty  was  won  finally 
by  a  grandson  of  Antigonus,  whose  descendants, 
known  as  Antigonid   kings,  held  the  throne  of 
Macedonia  till  the  Romans  swept  their  kingdom  ™a£rdot^ 
away.     Before  the  founder  of  the  dynasty  had  Antigonid 
established  himself  securely,  the  old  kingdom  of  ^f^s 
Philip  and  Alexander  came  near  to  being  engulfed 
in  the  conquests  of  a  nearer  neighbor  than  Rome, 
In  the  country  called  Epirus,  lying  west  of  Mace- 
donia, on  the  border  of  the  Ionian  Sea,  a  new 
monarchy  had  been  rising,  which  produced  at 
this  time  a  very  ambitious  but  erratic  king,  named 
Pyrrhus,   who  proved  to  be  one  of  the   ablest  ^J1^3' 
soldiers  of  his  age.    Pyrrhus  won  possession  of  the  Epirus. 
Macedonian  crown  in  274  B.  C.,  and  held  it  for  2?2'31 
two  years,  at  the  end  of  which  time  he  was  killed 
while  invading  the  Peloponnesian  states.     The 
Antigonid  authority  was  then  restored  in  Mace- 
donia and  generally  over  Greece. 

Throughout  the  long  period  of  struggle  Athens 
suffered  most.    As  soon  as  Alexander's  death  was  ^^sthe 
known,  she  formed  a  league  of  Greek  states  and  Mace- 
made  a  vain  effort  to  break  the  Macedonian  yoke.  y°^n 
The  Athenian  free  spirit  may  be  said  to  have 
expired  in  that  effort.    Its  last  great  witness  and 
interpreter,  Demosthenes,  who  had  never  ceased  Demos- 
to  inspire  resistance  to  the  Macedonians,  died  by  ghe"es- 
his  own  hand  to  escape  an  ignominious  execution. 


228 


From  Xerxes  to  Hannibal 


End  of 
Greek 
greatness 
in  Greece 


TheHelien- 
izing  of 
western 
Asia  and 
Egypt 


Greek  cities 
in  the  orien- 
tal world 


Servility  to  one  master  after  another  became  the 
habit  of  Athens  and  the  general  habit  of  Greece. 
Greek  society  everywhere  was  corrupted  by  the 
enormous  spoils  of  Asiatic  conquest  that  flowed 
into  the  land.  The  age  of  Greek  greatness  in 
Greece  proper  had  come  to  its  end.  Henceforth 
the  radiant  genius  of  the  Hellenic  race  was  to 
brighten  and  enlighten  the  world  from  Asiatic  and 
Egyptian  cities,  more  than  from  Attic  hills. 

Much  as  the  Athenian,  the  Corinthian,  the 
Spartan,  and  the  Theban  might  scorn  and  hate 
the  masterful  Macedonian,  whose  kinship  to 
themselves  they  would  hardly  acknowledge,  they 
were  quick  enough  to  follow  him  into  the  wide 
new  fields  of  opportunity  that  his  arms  had 
opened  up.  All  the  centers  of  active  life  in  Egypt 
and  most  parts  of  western  Asia  were  Hellenized  in 
the  century  that  followed  the  death  of  Alexander. 
In  the  history  of  the  ancient  world  there  was 
never  another  such  time  of  new  city  creation  as 
then.  Alexander  had  begun  it,  planting  colonies 
and  the  germs  of  cities,  in  the  old  Greek  fashion, 
wherever  he  went.  Seleucus,  his  final  chief  suc- 
cessor in  Asia,  and  Antiochus,  the  son  of  Seleucus, 
did  even  more.  The  new  cities  were  all  Greek 
cities,  essentially,  in  character,  culture,  and 
spirit,  propagating  influences  which  their  older 
neighbors,  even  in  the  close  communion  of  the 
Jews,  could  not  resist.  Preeminent  among  them 
were  Antioch  in  Syria  and  Alexandria  in  Egypt, 
the  latter  especially  becoming  the  central  seat  of 
Greek  influence,  acting  upon  and  moulding  the 


The  Spreading  of  Greek  Influences  229 

results  of  a  great  revolution  and  reorganization  oi: 
conditions  in  the  Mediterranean  world. 

For  the  first  time  in  the  long  history  of  Egypt, 
the   commercial   opportunities   of   that   country 
were  developed  by  the  shrewd  Ptolemy  Soter  and 
his  son.    They  opened  a  canal,  which  one  of  the  Empire  of 
pharaohs  had  attempted  to  build,  from  the  Red  f^1' 
Sea  to  the  Mediterranean  (ancient  precursor  of  ch.ii-v. 
the  modern  Suez  Canal) ;   cleared  the  Red  Sea  of 
pirates;    sent  trading  fleets  to  Arabia,  Ethiopia, 
and  India,  and  set  in  motion  streams  of  commerce 
which  flowed  through  their  new  city  of  Alexandria 
and    poured    unexampled    wealth    into    its    lap. 
Then,   with   rare   enlightenment  of  mind,   they 

'  °  .  '  J     Alexandria, 

converted  that  wealth  into  a  source  01  culture,  the  seat  of 
civilization,  refinement  of  life.  By  founding  the  culture 
great  Alexandrian  university,  with  its  splendid 
museum  and  unequaled  library,  they  drew  the 
pick  of  the  scholarship  and  talent  of  the  age  to 
their  city,  and  made  it  the  successor  to  Athens  as 
a  seat  of  science,  literature  and  art. 

In  this  new  development,  on  an  expanded  field, 
of  the  unique  powers  and  qualities  of  the  Greek 
mind,  it  took  on  a  new  character  and  produced 
fruits  of  a  new  kind.  In  letters,  arts  and  philoso- 
phy, it  bore  no  fruits  like  those  of  the  past,  but  it 
yielded  something  that  was  especially  needed  in 
the  world  at  that  time.  It  gave,  in  the  wide  circle 
of  its  influence,  a  freer,  fuller,  more  rationalized 
tendency  and  tone  to  all  feeling  and  thought.  It  , 
diffused,  so  to  speak,  a  rationalized  atmosphere  of  intellectual 
mind,  in  which  the  mankind  of  that  rim  of  su-  influence 


230  From  Xerxes  to  Hannibal 

perior  civilization  that  surrounded  the  eastern 
Mediterranean  began  to  see  all  things  in  a  larger 
and  more  distinct  way.  In  doing  so  it  prepared 
conditions  for,  first  the  Romanizing,  and  then  the 
Christianizing,  of  the  Mediterranean  world.  It  is 
difficult  to  believe  that  the  potent  forces  in  Greek 
culture  would  have  reached,  through  the  Romans, 
into  the  modern  life  of  Europe  as  they  did,  if  they 
had  not  wrought  their  first  effects  in  the  domin- 
ions of  the  Seleucids  and  the  Ptolemies.  It  is  still 
harder  to  see  how  Christianity  could  have  had  its 
planting,  without  the  preparation  which  Greek 

Prepara-      thought  had  made  for  it,  even  in  Jewish  minds, 

Christiani-    like  that  of  St.  Paul. 

ty  At  the  same  time,  the  religious  conceptions  of 

the  Greeks  were  affected  by  their  intimate  asso- 
ciation with  the  Jews.  For  it  was  now,  as  a  con- 
sequence of  the  changed  conditions  in  the  Levant, 
that   the   Jewish   dispersion — the    "diaspora" — 

~,    ,    . ,    became   a   movement  of  wide   range.      Inviting 

The  Jewish  °  ° 

diaspora  opportunities  in  other  lands  than  Judea  or  Baby- 
lonia were  opened  to  the  Jews  for  the  first  time. 
The  Ptolemies,  whose  rule  over  Palestine  was  one 
of  the  happy  periods  in  Jewish  history,  encour- 
aged them  to  settle  in  Egypt  and  Cyrenaica, 
especially  at  Alexandria,  into  which  rising  city 
they  gathered  in  numbers  that  were  reckoned 
finally  at  two-fifths  of  its  whole  population. 
Seleucus  and  Antiochus  gave  them  almost  equal 
welcome  in  Syria  and  Asia  Minor.  Then,  as  in 
modern  times,  they  showed  a  rare  ability  to  make 
the   most   of   their   opportunities,    especially   in 


The  Jewish  Dispersion  231 

trade,  and  they  soon  became  an  important  ele- 
ment in  the  Hellenic  world.  Naturally,  their 
noble  literature  and  their  monotheistic  religious 
ideas  drew  the  attention  of  thoughtful  Greeks, 
and  a  Greek  version  of  their  Scriptures — the  ver- 

.  i         o  •  1  Hellenic 

sion   known   as   the   beptuagmt — was   begun   at  and 
Alexandria  in  the  reign  of  Ptolemy  Philadelphus,  ^ebraic 
by  order  of  that  king.    Thus,  by  the  same  opera-  brought 
tion  of  events,  the  two  influences,  Hellenic  and  toge  er 
Hebraic,  were  brought  into  action  together  and 
subtly    mixed,    in    that    wonderful    nursery    of 
civilization,   the   border  lands   of  the  Mediter- 
ranean Sea. 

Considered  from  all  sides,  there  are  few  events 
in  history  that  show  consequences  so  momentous 
as  those  which  came  from  the  overthrow  of  the 
Persian  empire,  and  from  the  circumstances  that 

followed  it  in  that  part  of  the  world. 

India 

Those    consequences    did   not   extend   to   the 
"Farther  East"  of  that  day.    In  India,  the  con- 
quests of  Alexander  were  held  by  none  of  his 
generals,  though  Seleucus  Nicator  included  them 
in  his  claims.    While  Seleucus  was  struggling  with 
his   rivals   in   the   west,   an   Indian   adventurer, 
Chandra    Gupta    (called    Sandrokottos    by    the 
Greeks),  rose  to  power  in  the  basin  of  the  Ganges,  ctpta'? 
founding   the    kingdom   of   Magadha,    with    its  kingdom  of 
capital  at  Pataliputra,  the  Patna  of  the  present     aga 
day.      Seleucus    and    Chandra   Gupta   came   to 
terms,  and  the  claims  of  the  former  in  the  region 
of  the  Indus  were  given  up.     Relations  between 


232  From  Xerxes  to  Hannibal 

them  were  so  friendly  that  the  Syrian  monarch 
bestowed  his  daughter  on  the  Indian  king,  and 
kept  an  ambassador  in  residence  at  Pataliputra 
from  about  306  until  298  B.  C.  Subsequently 
this  ambassador  wrote  a  work  on  India,  which 
has  been  lost;  but  the  substance  of  some  parts  of 
it,  found  in  other  Greek  writings,  furnish  the  only 
direct  and  authentic  account  of  that  interesting 
country  and  people  that  we  have  from  so  early  a 
day. 
KingAsoka  Asoka,  grandson  of  Chandra  Gupta,  who 
226°' 263"  reigned  over  Magadha  from  263  till  226  B.  C, 
and  who  gave  a  wider  extent  to  its  bounds, 
became  a  convert  to  Buddhism,  and  established 
it  as  the  religion  of  the  state.  "The  Buddhism  of 
southern  Asia,"  says  Sir  William  Wilson  Hunter, 
"practically  dates  from  Asoka's  Council  [which 
he  caused  to  be  held  in  244  B.  C,  for  the  purpose 
of  determining  the  true  doctrines  of  the  Buddha]. 
In  a  number  of  edicts,  both  before  and  after  that 
Council,  he  published  throughout  his  empire  the 
grand  principles  of  the  faith.  Forty  of  these  royal 
sermons  are  still  found  graven  upon  pillars,  caves 
and  rocks  throughout  India.  Asoka  also  founded 
a  state  department,  with  a  minister  of  justice  and 
religion  at  its  head,  to  watch  over  the  purity  and 
iuddhisl  to  direct  the  spread  of  the  faith.  .  .  .  Asoka 
thought  it  his  duty  to  convert  all  mankind  to 
Buddhism.  His  rock  inscriptions  record  how  he 
sent  forth  missionaries  'to  the  utmost  limits  of  the 
barbarian  countries.'  .  .  .  He  collected  the 
Buddhist  sacred  books  into  an  authoritative  ver- 


Buddhism  and  Hinduism  233 

sion,  In  the  Magadhi  language  of  his  central  king-  ^un^r;. 

.  ,  • ■  1  •    i  1  Brief  His- 

dom  in  Behar, — a  version  which  for  two  thou-  tory  of  the 
sand  years  has  formed  the  southern  canon  of  the  Pnfjpa£St 
Buddhist  Scriptures."  p-  79 

But,  while  Asoka  gave  Buddhism  an  ascend- 
ancy in  India,  which  it  maintained  in  parts  of  the 
country  for  a  long  period,  Brahmanism  was  never 
crushed.  The  two  religions  existed  side  by  side 
for  centuries,  until  modern  Hinduism  was  evolved  _    .    . 

7  t  Evolution 

out  of  both,  though  more  from  the  old  religion  of  modem 
than  the  new.  The  Brahmans  annexed  the 
Buddha,  we  may  say,  to  their  own  polytheism,  by 
adopting  him  as  an  incarnation  of  Vishnu,  their 
most  popular  god.  Partly  by  such  means  of  slow 
absorption,  and  partly  by  some  final  persecutions, 
Buddhism  was  extinguished  in  its  native  country, 
at  last,  as  a  distinct  creed.  But  the  seed  planted 
by  its  missionaries  in  every  other  part  of  eastern 
Asia,  from  Ceylon  to  Manchuria,  had  taken  such 
root  that  no  less  than  forty  per  cent,  of  the 
inhabitants  of  the  world  are  disciples  of  the 
Buddha  to-day. 

Throughout  the  period  of  Chandra  Gupta  and 
Asoka,  the  Greeks  had  considerable  intercourse 
with  India;  but  after  that  time  it  declined,  and 
the  Greek  influences  that  were  beginning  to  act 
on  the  country  faded  out.  The  Greek  kings  of 
Bactria  attempted  conquests  in  the  Punjab, 
which  had  no  permanent  result.  Then  the  Bac- 
trian  kingdom  was  overthrown  by  invading  obscure 
hordes  of  the  people  whom  the  Greeks  called  period  of 
Scythians  (probably  the  Huns  or  Mongols  of  later  history 


234  From  Xerxes  to  Hannibal 

history),  from  Central  Asia,  and  the  same  invad- 
ers pressed  on  into  the  Punjab,  founding  exten- 
sive kingdoms  in  northern  India,  embracing 
Buddhism,  giving  a  change  to  its  character,  and 
producing  an  important  racial  mixture  in  the 
population  of  Hindustan.  In  this  time  and  after 
it,  for  several  centuries,  the  history  of  India  is 
obscure. 

China 

It  was  in  this  period  that  the  great  wall  of 
China  was  built,  on  the  northeastern  frontier  of 
the  empire,  as  a  means  of  defense  against  those 
wild  nomads  who  emerged  so  often  from  the 
Mongolian  desert  and  its  borders,  and  who  appear 
in  history  under  differing  names,  as  Huns,  Mon- 
gols, Tatars  or  Tartars,  and  Turks.  The  tribes 
which  troubled  the  Chinese  in  the  third  century 
B.  C.  were  known  to  them  as  the  Hiongnou,  and 
Huns  are   SUpposed   to  have   been   identical   with   the 

Huns  who  terrified  Europe  at  a  much  later  time. 
The  wall,  which  proved  to  be  an  ineffective 
defense,  was  built  by  the  emperor  Chi  Hwangti  of 
the  Tsin  dynasty,  who  reigned  from  about  B.  C. 
Hwangti,  24-6  till  209.  It  is  evident  that  Chi  Hwangti  was  a 
b.  c.  246-  ruler  of  great  energy  and  ability,  who  did  China  a 
good  service  in  breaking  down  a  feudalistic  sys- 
tem of  provincial  government  that  was  growing 
up;  but  the  tyranny  of  his  methods  gave  him  an 
evil  name  in  the  annals  of  the  Chinese.  Encoun- 
tering opposition  to  his  measures  from  the 
literati,  or  learned  class,  who  venerated  the  past, 


Struggling 
with  the 


209 


Evolution  of  the  Roman  Republic  235 

clung  to  precedent  and  ancient  prescription,  and 

t  ,  •  1  ,     ,  .       .  Attempted 

wanted  nothing  changed,  he  was  provoked,   at  destruction 
last,  to  attempt  a  destruction  of  all  records  of  the  of  Tf?°Tdts 

7  x  and  books 

past  and  all  books,  except  those  containing 
practical  knowledge,  of  medicine,  agriculture,  and 
the  like.  According  to  his  enemies,  he  hoped  by 
this  barbarous  destruction  to  make  himself 
appear  in  the  future  as  the  founder  and  first 
sovereign  of  the  empire.  Fortunately  he  was  not 
able  to  extinguish  the  ancient  literature  of  his 
country,  but  it  seems  to  have  suffered  a  very 
serious  mutilation  at  his  hands. 

The  Roman  Republic 

When  Alexander  led  the  Greeks  into  Asia,  and 
began  the  conquests  which  gave  them  a  dominat- 
ing influence  in  the  civilized  world,  the  Romans 
had  just  mastered  their  nearest  neighbors  in 
central  Italy,  and  made  themselves  ready  for 
action  on  a  larger  field. 

At  this  time  the  finally  complete  democratic 
constitution  of  the  Roman  republic  had  nearly 
been  attained.    From  their  success  in  B.  C.  4Q4,   ,c 

T7T)    (See  page 

when  the  powerful  magistracy  of  the  Tribunes  of  176-177) 
the  Plebs  was  secured  by  their  first  "secession," 
the  people  of  the  plebeian  order  went  forward,  Ta  ,or 
step  by  step,  to  the  attainment  of  equal  political  Connitu- 
rights  in  the  commonwealth,  and  equal  participa-  poiukai 
tion  in  the  lands  which  Roman  conquest  was  History  °f 
adding  continually  to  the  public  domain.    In  450  ch.iii-v. 
B.  C,  after  ten  years  of  struggle,  they  secured  the 
appointment  of  a  commission  which  framed  the 


236 


The  Twelve 
Tables  of 
the  Law. 
B.  C.  450 


Licinian 
Laws. 
B.  C.  367 


Lex 

Hortensia. 
B.  C.  287 


Cincinna- 
tus 


From  Xerxes  to  Hannibal 

famous  Twelve  Tables  of  Law,  and  so  established 
a  written  and  certain  code.  Five  years  later,  the 
caste  exclusiveness  of  the  patricians  was  broken 
down  by  a  law  which  permitted  marriages  be- 
tween the  orders.  In  367  B.  C.  the  patrician 
monoply  of  the  consular  office  was  extinguished, 
by  the  notable  Licinian  Laws,  which  also  limited 
the  extent  of  land  that  any  citizen  might  occupy, 
and  forbade  the  exclusive  employment  of  slave 
labor  on  any  estate.  One  by  one,  after  that, 
other  magistracies  were  opened  to  the  plebs;  and 
in  287  B.  C.  by  the  Lex  Hortensia,  the  plebeian 
concilium,  or  assembly,  was  made  independent  of 
the  senate  and  its  acts  declared  to  be  valid  and 
binding.  The  democratic  commonwealth  was 
now  complete. 

While  these  changes  in  the  constitution  of  their 
republic  were  in  progress,  the  Romans  had  been 
making  great  advances  toward  supremacy  in  the 
peninsula.  First  they  had  been  in  league  with 
their  Latin  neighbors,  for  war  with  the  ^Equians, 
the  Volscians,  and  the  Etruscans.  The  Volscian 
war  extended  over  forty  years,  and  ended  about 
450  B.  C.  in  the  practical  disappearance  of  the 
Volscians  from  history.  Of  war  with  the  JEqui- 
ans,  nothing  is  heard  after  458  B.  C,  when,  as  the 
tale  is  told,  Cincinnatus  left  his  plow  to  lead  the 
Romans  against  them.  The  war  with  the  Etrus- 
cans of  the  near  city  of  Veii  had  been  more  stub- 
born. Suspended  by  a  truce  between  474  and 
438  B.  C.j  it  was  then  renewed,  and  ended  in  396 
B.  C,  when  the  Etruscan  city  was  taken  and 


The  Gauls  in  Rome  237 

destroyed.     At  the  same  time  the  power  of  the  War  with 

1  /->  Etruscans 

Etruscans  was  shattered  at  sea  by  the  Greeks  of 
Tarentum  and  Syracuse,  while  at  home  they  were 
attacked  from  the  north  by  the  barbarous  Gauls 
or  Celts. 

These  last  named  people,  having  crossed  the 
Alps  from  Gaul  and  Switzerland  and  occupied 

1  t      1  •  1  Appear- 

northern  Italy,  were  now  pressing  upon  the  more  anceofthe 
civilized  nations  to  the  south  of  the  Po.     The  GauIs 
Etruscans  were  first  to  suffer,  and  their  despair 
became  so  great  that  they  appealed  to  Rome  for 
help.    The  Romans  gave  little  aid  to  them  in  their 
extremity;    but  enough  to  provoke  the  wrath  of 
Brennus,  the  savage  leader  of  the  Gauls.     He 
quitted  Etruria  and  marched  to  Rome,  defeating 
an  army  which  opposed  him  on  the  Allia,  pillaging  in  Rome, 
and  burning  the  city  and  slaying  the  senators, 
who  had  refused  to  take  refuge,  with  other  in- 
habitants, in  the  capitol.     The  defenders  of  the 
capitol  held  it  for  seven  months,  until  the  Gauls 
withdrew. 

We  are  now  beginning,  it  will  be  seen,  to  obtain, 
from  Greek  and  Roman  annals,  some  historic 
glimpses  of  other  European  peoples,  dwelling  in 
the  northward  regions  of  the  continent,  outside  of 
the  limits  of  the  small  Mediterranean  peninsulas. 
Those  known  as  Gauls  have  their  place  in  the 
division  called  Celtic  of  peoples  classified  by  Gauls-Celts 
Aryan  relationships  of  speech.  They  and  their 
Celtic  kindred — kindred  in  language  if  not  other- 
wise— had  probably  been  in  possession  of  the 
larger  part  of  southwestern  Europe — south  and 


238 


From  Xerxes  to  Hannibal 


Cisalpine 
and  Trans- 
alpine Gaul 


The  Gauls 
in  Greece. 
B.  C.  280- 
279 


Roman 
subjuga- 
tion of 
Latin  allies 
B.  C.  339- 
333 


west  of  the  Rhine  and  north  and  west  of  the  Alps 
■ — for  a  long  period  before  they  crossed  the  moun- 
tains into  Italy  and  came  into  collision  with  the 
Romans;  but  that  is  prehistoric  surmise.  Their 
history  dates  from  their  contact  with  the  record- 
writing  Romans  and  Greeks.  After  crossing  the 
Alps  they  remained  in  northern  Italy,  to  which 
the  Romans,  in  consequence,  gave  the  name  of 
Cisalpine  Gaul, — that  is,  Gaul  on  the  hither  side 
of  the  Alps, — while  the  France  and  Belgium  of  our 
modern  geography  were  called  Transalpine  Gaul, 
meaning  Gaul  on  the  further  side  of  the  Alps.  In 
the  century  after  their  entrance  into  Italy  they 
invaded  Macedonia  and  northern  Greece,  where 
they  committed  dreadful  ravages  in  two  succes- 
sive years,  penetrating  to  Delphi,  but  meeting 
there  with  a  destructive  repulse.  One  body  of  the 
invading  host  passed  into  Asia  Minor  and  became 
settled  in  a  Phrygian  district  to  which  they  gave 
the  name  Galatia. 

Rome  was  rebuilt  when  the  Gauls  withdrew, 
and  soon  took  up  her  war  again  with  the  Etruscan 
cities.  By  the  middle  of  the  same  century  she 
was  mistress  of  southern  Etruria,  though  her  ter- 
ritories had  been  ravaged  twice  again  by  renewed 
incursions  of  the  Gauls.  In  a  few  years  more, 
when  her  allies  of  Latium  complained  of  their 
meager  share  of  the  fruits  of  these  common  wars, 
and  demanded  Roman  citizenship  and  equal 
rights,  she  fought  them  fiercely  and  humbled 
them  to  submissiveness,  reducing  their  cities  to 
the  status  of  provincial  towns. 


Roman  Subjugation  of  Italy  239 

And  now,  having  awed  or  subdued  her  rivals, 
her  friends  and  her  enemies,  near  at  hand,  the 
young  republic  swung  into  the  career  of  rapid 
conquest  which  subdued  to  her  will,  within  three 
fourths  of  a  century,  the  whole  of  Italy  below  the 
mouth  of  the  river  Arno. 

In  14.1  B.  C.  the  Roman  arms  had  been  turned 

.  1        n  1  1  j      1  u     J    Wars  with 

against  the  Sammtes  at  the  south,  and  they  had  theSam- 
been  driven  from  the  Campania.  In  327  B.  C.  nItes-  B-c- 
the  same  dangerous  rivals  were  again  assailed, 
with  less  impunity.  At  the  Caudine  Forks,  the 
Samnites  inflicted  both  disaster  and  shame  upon 
their  indomitable  foes;  but  the  end  of  the  war 
found  Rome  advanced  and  Samnium  fallen  back. 
A  third  contest  ended  the  question  of  supremacy; 
but  the  Samnites  submitted  to  become  allies  and 
not  subjects  of  the  Roman  state. 

In  this  last  struggle  the  Samnites  had  sum- 
moned Gauls  and  Etruscans  to  join  them  against 
the  common  enemy,   and  Rome  had  overcome 
their  united  forces  in  a  great  fight  at  Sentinum. 
Ten   years   later   she   annihilated   the    Senonian  Senonian 
Gauls,   annexed   their  territory,   and   planted   a  Gauls.0'' 
colony  at  Sena  on  the  coast.     In  two  years  more  b^c.  29s- 
she  had  paralyzed  the  Boian  Gauls  by  a  terrible 
chastisement,  and  had  nothing  more  to  fear  from 
the    northward    side   of   her    realm.      Then    she 
turned  back  to  finish  her  work  in  the  south. 

The  Greek  cities  of  the  southern  coast  were 
harassed  by  various  marauding  neighbors,  and 
most  of  them  solicited  the  protection  of  Rome, 
which  involved,  of  course,  some  surrender  of  their 


240  From  Xerxes  to  Hannibal 

independence.  But  one  great  city,  Tarentum,  the 
most  powerful  of  their  number,  refused  these 
terms,  and  hazarded  a  war  with  the  terrible 
republic,  expecting  support  from  the  ambitious 
Pyrrhus,  king  of  Epirus,  on  the  Greek  coast 
227)  opposite   their  own.     Pyrrhus   came   readily   at 

their  call,  with  dreams  of  an  Italian  kingdom 

Roman  war  111  1  «  \       •         j    •  1 

withPyr-     more  agreeable  than  his  own.     Assisted  in  the 
rhus.  B.C.  undertaking    from    Macedonia    and    Syria,    he 
brought  an  army  of  25,000  men,  with  twenty 
elephants — which  Roman  eyes   had   never  seen 
before.     In  two  bloody  fights  Pyrrhus  was  vic- 
torious; but  the  cost  of  victory  was  so  great  that 
he  dared  not  follow  it  up.    He  went  over  to  Sicily, 
instead,  and  waged  war  for  three  years  with  the 
Carthaginians,  who  had  subjugated  most  of  the 
Pyrrhus  in    island-     The  Epirot  king  brought  timely  aid  to 
Siaiy.  B.C.  the    Sicilian    Greeks,    and    drove    their    Punic 
enemies  into  the  western  border  of  the  island;  but 
he  claimed   sovereignty  over  all  that  his   arms 
delivered,  and  was  not  successful  in  enforcing  the 
claim.      He    returned    to    Italy    and    found    the 
Romans  better  prepared  than  before  to  face  his 
phalanx  and  his  elephants.    They  routed  him  at 
Beneventum,  and  he  went  back  to  Epirus,  with 
subjuga-       his     dreams    dispelled.        Tarentum    fell,     and 
tionof        southern  Italy  was  added   to  the  dominion   of 

southern  * 

Italy  Rome. 

During  her  war  with  Pyrrhus,  the  republic  had 
formed  an  alliance  with  Carthage,  the  powerful 
maritime  Phoenician  city  on  the  African  coast. 
But  friendship  between  these  two  cities  was  im- 


Rome  at  War  with  Pyrrhus  241 

possible.    The  ambition  of  both  was  too  bound-  Rome  and 

f  .  r  Carthage. 

less  and  too  tierce. 

tt    «i    1     t»  1    •  1    j  Polybius» 

Until  the  Romans,  in  their  conquests,  reached  Histories, 

the   southern   extremity  of  Italy,   they   had   no      " l' 

quarrel  with  Carthage,  for  they  had  undertaken 

nothing  beyond  the  shore  of  the  sea.     Down  to 

that  time  the  contests  of  the  Carthaginians  were 

with    the   Greeks,    who   had    lodged    themselves  ^    , 

_  m  °  Greeks  and 

strongly  in  the  island  of  Sicily  and  on  the  coast  Cartha- 
of  southern  Italy,  and  were  the  only  competitors  sici?yS 
in  western  maritime  trade  that  Carthage  had  to 
fear.  Had  the  Sicilian  Greeks  been  united,  they 
might  have  offered  a  front  which  no  enemy  could 
attack  with  impunity;  for  several  of  their  cities 
had  grown  to  great  wealth  and  power.  Syracuse, 
at  the  head  of  them,  was  hardly  outranked  by 
another  Hellenic  city  of  the  age.  But  the  several 
bands  of  colonists  from  different  states  in  Greece 
who  founded  these  cities  carried  with  them  and 
perpetuated  in  Sicily  the  jealousies  and  feuds  of 
the  mother  land.  They  not  only  fought,  city 
with  city,  but  recklessly  called  in  outside  enemies 
to  help  them  pull  each  other  down.  It  was  a  call 
of  that  kind  which  drew  the  Athenians  into  their 
fatal  expedition  against  Syracuse  during  the  Pelo-  ^  pagp" 
ponnesian  war.  With  greater  madness,  Sicilian 
Greeks  enlisted  the  Carthaginians  repeatedly  in 
their  domestic  wars.  This  alone  kept  a  footing 
for  the  latter  in  Sicily,  and  probably  prevented 
the  rising  in  that  island  and  in  southern  Italy  of  a 
Greek  power  that  might  have  dominated  the 
western  Mediterranean  and  its  shores.    As  it  was, 


242 


The  First 
Punic  war. 
B.  C. 
264-240 


From  Xerxes  to  Hannibal 

when  the  Romans  had  carried  their  victorious 
arms  to  the  narrow  strait  which  parts  Sicily  from 
Italy,  there  could  be  but  one  question  concerning 
the  destiny  of  the  island,  and  that  was  whether 
its  masters  should  be  at  Carthage  or  at  Rome. 

Rome  threw  down  the  challenge  to  her  rival  in 
264  B.  C,  when  she  sent  help  to  the  Mamertines, 
a  band  of  brigands  who  had  seized  the  Sicilian 
city  of  Messina,  and  who  were  attacked  by  both 
Carthaginians  and  Syracusan  Greeks.  The  first 
Punic  war,  then  begun,  lasted  twenty-four  years, 
and  resulted  in  the  withdrawal  of  the  Cartha- 
ginians from  Sicily,  and  in  their  payment  of  an 
enormous  war  indemnity  to  Rome.  The  latter 
assumed  a  protectorate  over  the  island,  and  the 
Mommsen,  kingdom    of    Hiero    of    Syracuse    preserved    its 

History  of  .  ... 

Rome,bk.3,  nominal  independence  for  the  time;  but  Sicily,  as 
a  matter  of  fact,  might  already  be  looked  upon  as 
the  first  of  those  provinces,  beyond  Italy,  which 
Rome  bound  to  herself,  one  by  one,  until  she  had 
compassed  the  Mediterranean  with  her  dominion 
and  gathered  to  it  all  the  islands  of  that  sea. 

The  second  Punic  war,  called  sometimes  the 
Hannibalic  war,  was  fought  with  a  great  Cartha- 
ginian, rather  than  with  Carthage  herself. 
Hamilcar  Barca  had  been  the  last  and  ablest  of 
the  Punic  generals  in  the  contest  for  Sicily. 
Afterward  he  undertook  the  conquest  of  Spain, 
where  his  arms  had  such  success  that  he  estab- 
lished a  very  considerable  power,  more  than  half 
independent  of  the  parent  state.  He  nursed  an 
unquenchable  hatred  of  Rome,  and  transmitted 


The  Second 
Punic  war. 
B.  C. 
218-202 


The  Punic  Wars  243 

it  to  his  son  Hannibal,  who  solemnly  dedicated  Hannibal 
his  life  to  warfare  with  the  Latin  city. 

Hamilcar  died,  and  in  due  time  Hannibal  found 
himself  prepared  to  make  good  his  oath.  He  pro- 
voked a  declaration  of  war  by  attacking  Sagun- 
turn,  on  the  eastern  Spanish  coast — a  town  which 
the  Romans  "protected."  The  latter  expected  to 
encounter  him  in  Spain;  but  before  the  fleet 
bearing  their  legions  to  that  country  had  reached 
Massilia,  he  had  passed  the  Pyrenees  and  the 
Rhone,  with  nearly  100,000  men,  and  was  cross- 
ing the  Alps,  to  assail  his  astounded  foes  on  their  ;n  itaiy 
own  soil.  The  terrific  barrier  was  surmounted  p0iybius, 
with  such  suffering  and  loss  that  only  20,000  foot  Bwtones, 
and  6,000  horse,  of  the  great  army  which  left 
Spain,  could  be  mustered  for  the  clearing  of  the 
last  Alpine  pass.  With  this  small  following,  by 
sheer  energy,  rapidity  and  precision  of  movement 
— by  force,  in  other  words,  of  a  military  genius 
hardly  surpassed  in  the  world — he  defeated  the 
armies  of  Rome  again  and  again,  and  so  crush- 
ingly  in  the  awful  battle  of  Cannae  that  the  proud  canns. 
republic  was  staggered,  but  never  despaired.  B-  c-  2l6 

For  fifteen  years  the  great  Carthaginian  held 
his  ground  in  southern  Italy;  but  his  expectation 
of  being  joined  by  discontented  subjects  of  Rome 
in  the  peninsula  was  realized  but  slightly,  and  his 
own  country  gave  him  little  encouragement  or  BattIeof 
help.     His  brother  Hasdrubal,  marching  to  his  the 
relief,  was  defeated  on  the  river  Metaurus  and  b^c.^' 
slain.    The  arms  of  Rome  had  prospered  mean- 
time in  Sicily  and  in  Spain,  even  while  beaten  at 


244 


Scipio 
Africanus 


Battle  of 
Zama. 
B.  C.  202 


Destruc- 
tion of 
Carthage. 
B.  C.  146 


From  Xerxes  to  Hannibal 

home,  and  her  Punic  rival  had  been  driven  irom 
both.  In  204  B.  C.  the  final  field  of  battle  was 
shifted  to  Carthaginian  territory  by  Scipio,  of 
famous  memory,  thereafter  styled  Africanus, 
because  he  "carried  the  war  into  Africa."  Han- 
nibal abandoned  Italy  to  confront  him;  at  Zama 
the  long  contention  ended,  and  the  career  of 
Carthage  as  a  power  in  the  ancient  world  was 
closed  forever.  Existing  by  Roman  sufferance 
for  another  half  century,  she  then  gave  her 
implacable  conquerors  another  pretext  for  war, 
and  they  ruthlessly  destroyed  her. 


CHAPTER  VI 

FROM  THE  AGE  OF  HANNIBAL  TO  THE 
DEATH  OF  CESAR 

(B.  C.  200  to  44) 

Eastward  conquests  of  Rome:  Roman  subjugation  of  Greece. — Defeat  of 
the  Syrian  king  Antiochus.  The  Syrian  monarchy  and  the  Jews:  Oppression 
of  the  Jews. — Revolt  of  the  Maccabees. — Rise  of  the  Asmonean  monarchy. 
The  Zenith  and  the  Decline  of  the  Roman  Republic:  Evil  effects  of  the  Roman 
conquests  on  the  character  of  the  Republic. — Rise  of  a  new  aristocracy. — 
Mischievous  features  of  the  democratic  system. — Increasing  use  of  slave 
labor. — Aristocratic  monopoly  of  public  lands. — Agrarian  agitations. — Fate 
of  the  Gracchi. — The  Jugurthine  War. — Destruction  of  Carthage. — Popu- 
larity and  power  of  Marius,  the  successful  soldier. — Optimates  and  populares. 
— The  Social  War. — Rivalry  of  Marius  and  Sulla. — Civil  War. — Triumph  of 
Sulla. — His  dictatorship  and  retirement. — Intrigues  and  struggles  in  the  next 
generation. — The  great  game  played  by  Pompey,  Crassus,  and  Csesar. — 
Pompey  in  the  East.— His  suppression  of  the  Syrian  and  Asmonean  monarch- 
ies.— -CiBsar's  conquest  of  Gaul. — Civil  war  between  partisans  of  Ccesar  and 
Pompey.  —Triumph  of  Csesar. — His  supremacy. — His  assassination. — His 
great  place  in  history.     China:    The  Han  dynasty. 

The  expansion  of  the  dominion  of  Rome  till  it 
circumscribed  the  Mediterranean  and  stretched 
in  Europe  to  contact  with  the  lands  of  the  Teu- 
tonic peoples;  the  decay  and  fall  of  its  republican 
institutions  of  government;  the  founding  of  its 
imperial  system;  the  preparation,  in  fact,  of  the  The  period 
field  and  the  conditions  of  Roman  influence  on  all 
future  history, — this  is  the  sum  of  chief  events  in 
the  period  to  which  the  present  chapter  relates. 

Eastward  Progress  of  Roman  Conquest 

After  the  overthrow  of  Hannibal,  the  next 
achievement  of  the  Romans  was  the  subjugation 
of  Greece.  For  a  time,  in  the  preceding  century, 
the  better  Greeks  had  hopes  of  deliverance  from 

245 


246 


The 
Achaian 
League  in 
Greece 


Plutarch, 
Aratos 


Thirlwall, 
History  of 
Greece, 
ch.  lxi-lxii 


Battle  of 
Seilasia. 
B.  C.  221 


Mace- 
donian 
wars  of 
Rome.  B.C. 
214-197 


From  Hannibal  to  Oesar 

the  servile  and  oppressed  condition  into  which 
their  unhappy  country  had  sunk.  Such  hopes 
were  raised  by  the  confederating  of  several  of  the 
Peloponnesian  states  in  what  took  the  name  of 
the  Achaian  League.  Sparta,  alone,  in  Pelopon- 
nesus, always  jealous  and  selfish,  became  hostile 
to  the  league,  as  the  latter  grew  strong  enough  to 
expel  Macedonian  garrisons  from  city  after  city, 
— even  from  Athens,  which  became  an  ally,  but 
not  a  member,  of  the  league.  Unfortunately 
Sparta  had  a  king,  Cleomenes,  who  was  an  able 
soldier,  while  the  patriot  and  statesman,  Aratos, 
who  was  the  founder  and  soul  of  the  Achaian 
League,  was  wanting  in  capacity  for  war.  When, 
at  last,  Sparta  attacked  the  league,  the  latter 
suffered  such  defeats  that  its  leaders  were  driven 
to  despair.  In  their  extremity  they  abandoned 
the  whole  object  of  their  confederation  by  solicit- 
ing help  from  the  Macedonian  king.  With  that 
help  they  overthrew  Cleomenes  in  battle  at 
Seilasia,  crushing  Sparta,  but  bowing  all  Greece 
again  under  the  Macedonian  yoke.  It  was  soon 
after  this  event  that  the  Romans  appeared. 

The  first  war  of  the  Romans  on  the  Greek  side 
of  the  Ionian  Sea  took  place  during  the  second 
Punic  war,  caused  by  an  alliance  formed  between 
Hannibal  and  King  Philip  of  Macedonia.  They 
pursued  it  then  no  further  than  to  frustrate 
Philip's  designs  against  themselves;  but  they 
formed  alliances  with  the  Greek  states  oppressed 
or  menaced  by  the  Macedonian,  and  these  drew 
them  into  a  second  war,  which  they  entered  pro- 


Progress  of  Roman  Conquest  247 

fessedly  as  the  liberators  of  Greece,  just  as  the 

century  closed.     On  Cynoscephalse,  Philip  was 

overthrown,  his  kingdom  reduced  to  vassalage, 

and  the  freedom  of  all  Greece  was  proclaimed 

solemnly  by  the  Roman  consul  Flamininus. 

And  now,  for  the  first  time,  Rome  came  into 

conflict  with  an  Asiatic  power.    Before  describing 

the  conflict  it  will  be  necessary  to  narrate  a  little 

of  what  happened  in  western  Asia  and  Egypt, 

while  the  Romans  were  engaged  in  their  Punic 

wars. 

Syria,  Egypt,  and  Palestine 

The  Seleucid  or  Syrian  monarchy  reached  the 
end  of  its  prosperity  when  Antiochus  Soter,  its  The 
second  king,  died  in  2^2  B.  C.     His  successors,  SeIeucid 

°*  J  7    monarchy 

during  a  period  of  about  twenty-eight  years,  were 
debauched  and  degenerate  despots,  who  lost  most 
of  their  inherited  dominions  in  war  with  Egypt,  or 
in  consequence  of  family  wars.  Ptolemy  Euer- 
getes,  the  third  of  the  Greek-Egyptian  kings, 
became  master  at  one  time  of  nearly  their  whole 
realm;  but  the  Egyptian  monarchy,  like  that  of 
Syria,  was  a  decaying  one,  and  the  conquests  of 
Euergetes  were  not  held.  In  224  B.  C.  another 
Antiochus  came  to  the  Syrian  throne,  who  turned 
the  tide  of  fortune,  and  recovered,  temporarily, 
a  considerable  part  of  what  his  father  and  his 
uncle  had  lost.  He  was  a  prince  of  some  capacity, 
but  more  ambition  and  pretension,  and  the 
sounding   title   of  Antiochus   the   Great,   which  £"ti°chus., 

n  .  thedreat 

flattery  gave  him,  was  hardly  warranted  by  his  B.C.  224- 
deeds.    He  failed  in  a  prolonged  effort  to  drive  the  '  7 


248 


Palestine 
under  the 
Seleucidse. 
B.  C.  201 


Antiochus 
and  the 
Romano 


Battle  of 
Magnesia. 
B.  C.  191 


Antiochus 
Epiphanes 


From  Hannibal  to  Oesar 

rising  Parthian  nation  from  territory  it  had  seized 
in  northern  Persia;  hut  parts  of  Asia  Minor  that 
had  slipped  from  his  kingdom  were  brought  back. 
In  one  war  with  Egypt  he  experienced  defeat; 
but  he  was  the  victor  in  a  second  one,  and  took 
Palestine  as  a  long  coveted  prize.  This  transfer 
of  their  country  from  the  Ptolemies  to  the 
Seleucidae  was  a  heavy  calamity  to  the  Jews. 

Flushed  with  his  triumph  over  the  Egyptians, 
and  by  some  new  successes  in  Asia  Minor,  the 
vainglorious  Antiochus  the  Great  became  am- 
bitious at  length  to  expel  the  Romans  from 
Greece.  Encouraged  in  that  ambition  by  some  of 
the  Greeks,  and  having  Hannibal,  then  a  fugitive 
at  his  court,  to  give  him  counsel,  which  he  lacked 
the  intelligence  to  use,  Antiochus  crossed  the 
Hellespont  and  took  possession  of  the  famous  pass 
of  Thermopylae.  The  Romans  attacked  him 
there,  drove  him  back  to  the  shores  from  which 
he  came,  pursued  him  thither,  crushed  him 
utterly  in  a  great  battle  on  the  field  of  Magnesia, 
and  then  took  the  kingdoms  and  cities  of  Asia 
Minor  under  their  protection,  as  allies  (soon  to  be 
subjects)  of  Rome.  Four  years  later  Antiochus 
ended  his  career.  His  diminished  kingdom  was 
ruled  for  twelve  years  by  an  elder  son,  and  then 
passed  to  a  younger  one,  Antiochus  IV.,  called 
Epiphanes,  who  bears  in  Jewish  history  the  most 
hated  of  names.  He  was  a  vigorous  prince,  who 
reenlarged  the  Syrian  monarchy,  and  who  was 
only  prevented  by  Roman  intervention  from 
adding  Egypt  to  it;  but  his  energies  were  despotic 


The  Syrian  Monarchy  249 

and  malignant,  and  none  suffered  from  them  so 
much  as  the  Jews. 

It  can  hardly  be  said  that  the  Jewish  suffering 
was  undeserved,  for  the  Judean  community  had 
fallen  into  a  deeply  corrupted  state.  The  high 
priests  of  its  temple  had  become  secular  princes, 
given  up  to  political  ambitions,  immersed  in 
unscrupulous  intrigues,  stained  with  crimes,  State  of  the 
showing  no  signs  of  a  religious  spirit  or  purpose 
in  what  they  did.  The  people,  as  a  whole,  were 
scarcely  more  faithful  to  their  religion,  beyond  its 
forms,  than  the  ruling  priests.  But  they  cher- 
ished the  temple  and  were  jealous  guardians  of 
the  rich  treasures  it  held.  When,  therefore,  a  seri)  e 
claimant  of  the  high  priesthood,  who  had  bought  s,ket^[  °f 

°      r  '  °  the  History 

the  sacred  office  from  Antiochus  IV.,  robbed  the  0/ Israel 
temple  to  make  his  payment  for  it,  they  rose  in  a  ™  ^"xi*  '* 
furious  insurrection,  which  provoked  the  wrath 
of  the  king.  Jerusalem  then  suffered  a  terrible 
chastisement,  but  not  sufficient  to  satisfy  the 
implacable  despot  who  held  its  fate  in  his  hands. 
He  resolved  to  extinguish  the  Hebraic  religion, 
and  so  destroy  the  bond  which  made  one  people  of 
the  Jews,  wherever  they  dwelt.  In  carrying  out 
that  project,  Jerusalem,  in  168  B.  C,  was  sacked 
and  partly  burned,  a  vast  number  of  its  inhabit- 
ants were  slain,  10,000  of  them  were  sold  into  ment 
slavery,  the  temple  was  plundered  and  polluted 
by  the  introduction  of  pagan  rites,  and  the  Jews, 
there  and  in  all  the  king's  dominions,  were  re- 
quired, on  pain  of  death,  to  adore  publicly  the 
false  gods. 


Revolt  and 
chastise- 


250 


Revolt  of 
the  Mac- 
cabees. 
B.C. 
166-161 


Josephus, 
Antiquities 
of  the  Jews, 
bk.  12 


From  Hannibal  to  Ctesar 

For  two  years  there  was  either  submission  to 
the  oppressive  edict,  or  suffering  of  persecution,  or 
else  escape  from  it  into  Egypt  and  into  the  neigh- 
boring deserts  and  hills.  Then  an  outbreak  of 
revolt  was  begun,  in  the  smallest  possible  way,  by 
a  priest  named  Mattathias,  and  his  five  sons. 
Joined  by  others,  these  became  the  chiefs  of  a 
band  which  went  through  the  country  destroying 
the  pagan  altars  and  rousing  the  people  to  defend 
their  faith.  Mattathias  soon  died,  and  his  leader- 
ship passed  to  one  of  his  sons,  Judas,  who  acquired 
the  surname  of  Makkabi,  or  Maccabaeus,  by 
which  he  is  known.  Under  Judas  Maccabaeus  the 
revolt  became  formidable,  and  extorted  a  treaty 
which  restored  religious  freedom  to  the  Jews; 
but  the  Syrians  appointed  a  high  priest  who  was 
obnoxious  to  Judas  and  his  party,  and  the  revolt 
was  renewed.  Judas  fell  in  battle  the  next  year 
and  his  party  was  broken  up;  but  Jonathan,  his 
brother,  revived  it  later  and  made  it  useful  to 
himself. 

There  were  two  claimants  of  the  Syrian  crown, 
and  Jonathan  sold  his  support  to  one  of  them, 
who  became  the  winner,  and  who  made  him  high 
priest  and  governor  of  Judea.  The  same  double 
dignity  was  attained  some  years  afterward  by 
Simon,  another  of  the  brothers,  who  received  it 
from  an  assembly  of  the  people;  for  the  Syrian 
authority  had  then  waned  to  such  a  degree  that 
Judea  was  almost  an  independent  state.  From 
that  time  the  princely  high  priesthood  was  heredi- 
tary in  the  possession  of  the  Asmoneans,  or  Has- 


Roman  Conquest  of  Greece  251 

moneans,  as  the  family  was  named,  and-  Simon's  The  Has- 

grandson  assumed  the  crown  and  title  of  king, 

calling    himself   Aristobulus,    instead   of   Judas,  B-  C.  105 

which  was  his  Jewish  name. 

Affairs  at  Rome 

Before  these  things  came  about,  the  subjection 
of  Greece  to  Rome  had  been  made  complete.  For 
twenty  years  after  the  overthrow  of  Antiochus 
III.  at  Magnesia,  there  was  little  change  in  the 
outward  situation  of  affairs  among  the  Greeks. 
But  discontent  with  the  harshness  and  haughti-  subjugation 

.  of  Greece. 

ness  of  Roman  '  protection"  changed  from  sul-  b. c. 
lenness  to  heat,  and  Perseus,  son  of  Philip  of 
Macedonia,  fanned  it  steadily,  with  the  hope  of 
bringing  it  to  a  flame.  Rome  watched  him  with 
keen  vigilance,  and  before  his  plans  were  ripe  her 
legions  were  upon  him.  He  battled  with  them 
obstinately  for  three  years,  but  his  fate  was  sealed 
at  Pydna.  He  went  as  a  prisoner  to  Rome;  his 
kingdom  was  broken  into  four  small  republics; 
the  Achaian  League  was  stricken  by  the  captivity 
of  a  thousand  of  its  chief  men;  the  whole  of 
Greece  was  humbled  to  submissiveness,  though 
not  yet  formally  reduced  to  the  state  of  a  Roman 
province.  That  followed  a  few  years  later,  when  u$  ' 
risings  in  Macedonia  and  Achaia  were  punished 
by  the  extinction  of  the  last  semblance  of  political 
independence  in  both. 

Rome  now  gripped  the  Mediterranean  (the 
ocean  of  the  then  civilized  world)  as  with  five 
fingers  of  a  powerful  hand:  one  laid  on  Italy  and 
all  its  islands,  one  on  Macedonia  and  Greece,  one 


252 


From  Hannibal  to  Oesar 


The  zenith 
of  the 
Roman 
republic 


Beginning 
of  its 
decline 


(See  page 
236) 


The  new 
aristocracy 


Supremacy 
of  the 
senate 


on  Carthage,  one  on  Spain,  and  the  little  finger  of 
her  "protection"  reaching  over  to  the  Lesser 
Asia.  Little  more  than  half  a  century,  since  the 
day  that  Hannibal  threatened  her  own  city  gates, 
had  sufficed  to  win  this  vast  dominion.  But  the 
losses  of  the  republic  had  been  greater,  after  all, 
than  the  gains;  for  the  best  energies  of  its  political 
constitution  had  been  expended  in  the  acquisi- 
tion, and  the  nobler  qualities  in  its  character  had 
been  touched  with  the  incurable  taints  of  a 
licentious  prosperity. 

In  theory  and  in  form,  the  Roman  constitution 
remained  as  democratic  as  it  was  made  by  the 
Licinian  Laws,  and  by  the  finishing  touch  of  the 
Hortensian  Law.  But  in  practical  working  it  had 
reverted  to  the  aristocratic  mode.  A  new  aristoc- 
racy had  risen  out  of  the  plebeian  ranks  to  rein- 
force the  old  patrician  order.  It  was  composed  of 
the  families  of  men  who  had  been  raised  to  dis- 
tinction and  ennobled  by  the  holding  of  eminent 
offices,  and  its  spirit  was  no  less  jealous  and 
exclusive  than  that  of  the  older  high  caste. 

Thus  strengthened,  the  aristocracy  had  re- 
covered its  ascendancy  in  Rome,  and  the  senate, 
which  it  controlled,  had  become  the  supreme 
power  in  government.  The  amazing  success  of 
the  republic  during  the  last  century  just  reviewed 
— its  successes  in  war,  in  diplomacy,  and  in  all  the 
sagacious  measures  of  policy  by  which  its  great 
dominion  had  been  won — are  reasonably  ascribed 
to  this  fact.  For  the  senate  had  wielded  the 
power  of  the  state,  in  most  emergencies,  with  pas- 


Decline  of  the  Roman  Republic  253 

sionless  deliberation  and  with  unity  and  fixity  of 
aim.  *l 

But  it  maintained  its  ascendancy  by  an  increas- 
ing employment  of  means  which   debased   and 
corrupted    all    orders    alike.      The    people    held 
powers  which  might  paralyze  the  senate  at  any 
moment,  if  they  chose  to  exercise  them,  through  Corruption 
their  assemblies  and  their  tribunes.     They  had  ofthe 
seldom  brought  those  powers  into  play  thus  far, 
to  interfere  with  the  senatorial  government  of  the 
republic,  simply  because  they  had  been  bribed  to 
abstain.     The  art  of  the  politician  in  Rome,  as  c°nstitu" 
distinguished  from  the  statesman,   had  already  Roman 
become  a  demagogic  art.     This  could  not  well  cmzenshlP 
have  been  otherwise  under  the  peculiar  constitu- 
tion of  the  Roman  citizenship.    Of  the  thirty-five 
tribes  who  made  up  the  Roman  people,  legally 
qualified  to  vote,  only  four  were  within  the  city. 
The   remaining   thirty-one   were   tribus  rusticae. 
There  was   no  delegated   representation  of  this 
country    populace — citizens    beyond    the    walls. 
To  exercise  their  right  of  suffrage  they  must  be 
present  in  person  at  the  meetings  of  the  comitia  ,, 
tributa — the  tribal  assemblies ;    and  those  of  any  History  of 
tribe  who  chanced  to  be  in  attendance  at  such  a  4.358-369 
meeting  might  give  a  vote  which  carried  with  it 
the  weight  of  their  whole  tribe.     For  questions 
were  decided  by  the  majority  of  tribal,  not  indi- 
vidual, votes;  and  a  very  few  members  of  a  tribe 
might  act  for  and  be  the  tribe,  for  all  purposes  of 
voting,    on    occasions    of   the    greatest    possible 
importance. 


254  From  Hannibal  to  Cesar 

It  is  quite  evident  that  a  democratic  system  of 
this  nature  gave  wide  opportunity  for  corrupt 
"politics."     There  must  have  been,  always,  an 

Corrupt  »  .         . 

politics  attraction  for  the  baser  sort  among  the  rural 
plebs,  drawing  them  into  the  city,  to  enjoy  the 
excitement  of  political  contests,  and  to  partake 
of  the  flatteries  and  largesses  which  began  early 
to  go  with  those.  And  circumstances  had  tended 
to  increase  this  sinister  sifting  into  Rome  of  the 
most  vagrant  and  least  responsible  of  her  citizens, 
to  make  them  practically  the  deputies  and 
representatives  of  that  mighty  sovereign  which 
had    risen   in    the  world — the    "Populus    Ro- 


manus." 


For  there  was  no  longer  thrift  or  dignity  pos- 
sible in  the  pursuits  of  husbandry.     The  long 
Hannibalic  war  had  ruined  the  farming  class  in 
Ruin  of  the  Italy  by  its  ravages;  but  the  extensive  conquests 
class  that  followed  it  had  been  still  more  ruinous  to 

that  class,  by  several  effects  combined.  Corn 
supplies  from  the  conquered  provinces  were 
poured  into  Rome  at  cheapened  prices;  enormous 

Mommsen,     f  i  i      •  i  • 

History  of     fortunes,    gathered    in    the    same    provinces    by 

Rome,         officials,  by  farmers  of  taxes,  by  money-lenders, 

and  by  traders,  were  invested  in  great  estates, 

absorbing  the  small  farms  of  olden  time;    and, 

finally,  free-labor  in  agriculture  was  supplanted, 

degraded r    more  and  more,  by  the  labor  of  slaves,  which  war 

by  slavery    and  increasing  wealth  combined  to  multiply  in 

numbers.    Thus  the  rural  plebs  were  a  depressed 

and,  therefore,  a  degenerating  class,  and  the  same 

circumstances  that  made  them  so  impelled  them 


Causes  of  Decline  255 

towards  the  city,  to  swell  the  mob  which  held  its 
mighty  sovereignty  in  their  hands.  mTnTfor 

So  far,  a  lavish  amusement  of  this  mob  with  the  Roman 
free  games,  and  liberal  bribes,  had  kept  it  gen- 
erally submissive  to  the  senatorial  government. 
But  the  more  it  was  debased  by  such  methods, 
and  its  vagrancy  encouraged,  the  more  extrava- 
gant gratuities  of  like  kind  it  claimed.  Hence  a 
time  could  never  be  far  away  when  the  aristocracy 
and  the  senate  would  lose  their  control  of  the 
popular  vote  on  which  they  had  built  their 
governing  power. 

But  they  invited  the  quicker  coming  of  that 
time  by  their  own  greediness  in  the  employment 
of  their  power  for   selfish   and   dishonest   ends. 
Practically  they  had  recovered  their  monopoly  of  Aristo- 
the  use  of  the  public  lands.     The  Licinian  law,  cratlc 

r  monopoly 

which  forbade  any  one  person  to  occupy  more  of  public 
than  five  hundred  jugera  (about  three  hundred 
acres)  of  the  public  lands,  had  been  made  a  dead 
letter.  The  great  tracts  acquired  in  the  Samnite 
wars,  and  since,  had  remained  undistributed, 
while  the  use  and  profit  of  them  were  enjoyed, 
under  one  form  of  authority  or  another,  by  rich 
capitalists  and  powerful  nobles. 

This  evil,  among  many  that  waxed  greater  each 
year,  caused  the  deepest  discontent,  and  pro- 
voked movements  of  reform  which  passed  by 
rapid  stages  into  a  revolution,  and  ended  in  the 
fall  of  the  republic.  The  leader  of  the  movement  Agrarian 
at  its  beginning  was  Tiberius  Gracchus,  grandson  agitations 
of  Scipio  Africanus  on  the  side  of  his  mother,  Cor- 


256  From  Hannibal  to  Oesar 

nelia.    Elected  tribune  in  133  B.  C,  he  set  him- 
self to  the  dangerous  task  of  rousing  the  people 
against  senatorial  usurpations,  especially  in  the 
matter  of  the  public  domain.    He  only  drew  upon 
chi!    B.C.  himself  the  hatred  of  the  senate  and  its  selfish 
133-121       supporters;  he  failed  to  rally  a  popular  party  that 
was  strong  enough  for  his  protection,   and  his 
enemies  slew  him  in  the  very  midst  of  a  meeting 
TtbTriS'     °f  the  tribes.     His  brother  Caius  took  up  the 
Gracchus,     perilous  cause  and  won  the  office  of  tribune  in 
Gracchus      avowed  hostility  to  the  senatorial  government. 
He  was  driven  to  bid  high  for  popular  help,  even 
rnnwyTf   when  the  measures  which  he  strove  to  carry  were 
Rome,bk.4-  most    plainly   for   the   welfare    of   the    common 
people,  and  he  may  seem  to  modern  eyes  to  have 
played  the  demagogue  with  some  extravagance. 
But  statesmanship  and  patriotism  without  dema- 
goguery   for  their   instrument   or   their  weapon 
were  hardly  practicable,  perhaps,  in  the  Rome  of 
those  days,  and  it  is  not  easy  to  find  them  clean- 
handed in  any  political  leader  of  the  last  century 
of  the  republic. 

The  fall  of  Caius  Gracchus  was  hastened  by  his 
attempt  to  extend  the  Roman  franchise  to  all  the 
freemen  of  Italy.  The  mob  in  Rome  was  not 
pleased  with  such  political  generosity,  and  cooled 
in  its  admiration  for  the  large-minded  tribune. 
He  lost  his  office  and  the  personal  protection  it 
B.  C.  121  threw  over  him,  and  then  he,  like  his  brother,  was 
slain  in  a  melee. 

For  ten  years  the  senate,  the  nobility,  and  the 
capitalists  (now  beginning  to  take  the  name  of  the 


The  Gracchi  257 

equestrian  order),  had  mostly  their  own  way 
again,  and  effaced  the  work  of  the  Gracchi  as 
completely  as  they  could.  Then  came  disgraceful 
troubles  in  Numidia  which  enraged  the  people 
and  moved  them  to  a  new  assertion  of  themselves. 
The  troubles  in  Numidia  were  a  sequel  to  the 
awful  tragedy  of  the  destruction  of  Carthage, 
some  thirty  years  before.  The  Numidians,  who 
were  the  aboriginal  neighbors  of  the  Carthagini- 
ans, in  north  Africa,  had  been  their  allies  in  the 
second  Punic  war,  and  suffered  with  them  on 
their  defeat.  The  Numidian  king  was  expelled  Cartha 
from  his  throne  and  the  kingdom  given  by  the  and  Mas- 
Romans  to  an  outlawed  prince,  Massinissa,  who 
became  their  tool,  used  for  the  perpetual  harass- 
ing of  Carthage,  to  prevent  any  possible  revival 
of  prosperity  in  that  ruined  state.  Again  and 
again  the  helpless  Carthaginians  appealed  to 
Rome  to  protect  them  from  his  depredations,  and 
finally  they  ventured  to  attempt  the  protection  of 
themselves.    Then  the  patient  perfidy  of  Roman 

statecraft   grasped   its    reward.      It   had   waited 

£        1  ■  xtv/t        •    •  The  goad- 

many  years  tor  the  provocations  or  Massinissa  to  ing  of  the 

work  their  effect;  the  maddened  Carthaginians 
had  broken,  at  last,  the  hard  letter  of  the  treaty  of 
201  by  assailing  the  friend  and  ally  of  Rome.  The 
pretext  sufficed  for  a  new  declaration  of  war,  with 
the  fixed  purpose  of  pressing  it  to  the  last  ex- 
treme. Old  Cato,  who  had  been  crying  in  the 
ears  of  the  senate,  " Carthago  delenda  est"  should 
have  his  will. 

The  doomed  Carthaginians  were  kept  in  ignor- 


ians 


258 


Destruc- 
tion of 
Carthage, 
B.  C.  146 


Jugurtha 


Marius 


From  Hannibal  to  Oesar 

ance  of  the  fate  decreed,  until  they  had  been 
tricked  into  the  surrender  of  their  arms  and  the 
whole  armament  of  their  city.  But  when  they 
knew  the  dreadful  truth,  they  threw  off  all 
cowardice  and  rose  to  such  a  majesty  of  spirit  as 
had  never  been  exhibited  in  their  history  before. 
Without  weapons,  or  engines,  or  ships,  until  they 
made  them  anew,  they  shut  their  gates  and  kept 
the  Roman  armies  out  for  more  than  two  years. 
It  was  another  Scipio,  adopted  grandson  and 
namesake  of  the  conqueror  of  Hannibal,  who 
finally  entered  Carthage,  fought  his  way  to  its 
citadel,  street  by  street,  and,  against  his  own 
wish,  by  command  of  the  implacable  senate  at 
Rome,  leveled  its  last  building  to  the  earth,  after 
sending  the  inhabitants  who  survived  to  be  sold 
as  slaves. 

When  Massinissa  died,  he  left  his  kingdom  to 
be  governed  jointly  by  two  young  sons  and  an 
older  nephew.  The  latter,  Jugurtha,  put  his 
cousins  out  of  the  way,  took  the  kingdom  to  him- 
self, and  baffled  attempts  at  Rome  to  call  him  to 
account,  by  heavy  bribes.  The  corruption  in  the 
case  became  so  flagrant  that  even  the  corrupted 
Roman  populace  revolted  against  it,  and  took  the 
Numidian  business  into  its  own  hands.  War 
was  declared  against  Jugurtha  by  popular  vote, 
and,  despite  opposing  action  in  the  senate,  one 
Marius,  an  experienced  soldier  of  humble  birth, 
was  elected  consul  and  sent  out  to  take  command. 
Marius  distinguished  himself  less  than  one  of  his 
officers,  Cornelius  Sulla;    but  he  bore  the  lion's 


First  Historic  Appearances  of  Teutons  259 

share  of  glory  when  Jugurtha  was  taken  captive  B- c-  IO+ 
and  conveyed  to  Rome.     Marius  was  now  the 
great  hero  of  the  hour,  and  events  were  preparing 
to  lift  him  to  the  giddiest  heights  of  popularity. 

Hitherto,  the  barbarians  of  wild  Europe  whom 
the  Romans  had  met  were  either  Celts,  or  non- 
Aryan  tribes  in  northern  Italy,  Spain  and  Gaul. 
Now,  for  the  first  time,  the  armies  of  Rome  were 
challenged  by  tribes  of  another  grand  division  of  f*fcthls" 
the  group  of  peoples  called  Aryan,  coming  out  of  l^™*™* 
the  farther  north.     These  were  the  Cimbri  and  peoples. 

B.  C. 

the  Teutones,  wandering  hordes  of  the  great  113-102 
Teutonic  or  Germanic  race  which  has  occupied 
western  Europe  north  of  the  Rhine  since  the 
beginning  of  historic  time.  So  far  as  we  can 
know,  these  two  were  the  first  of  the  Germanic 
nations  to  migrate  to  the  south. 

They  came  into  collision  with  Rome  in  113 
B.  C.,  when  they  were  in  Noricum,  threatening 
the  frontiers  of  her  Italian  dominion.  Four  years 
later  they  were  in  southern  Gaul,  where  the 
Romans  were  now  settling  colonies  and  subduing  Cimbn  and 

0  °     leutones 

the  native  Celts.  Twice  they  had  beaten  the 
armies  opposed  to  them;  two  years  later  they 
added  a  third  to  their  victories;  and  in  105  B.  C. 
they  threw  Rome  into  consternation  by  destroy- 
ing two  great  armies  on  the  Rhone.  Italy  seemed 
helpless  against  the  invasion  for  which  these 
terrible  barbarians  were  now  preparing,  when 
Marius  went  against  them.  In  the  summer  of  victories  of 
102  B.  C.  he  annihilated  the  Teutones,  near  Aquae  Marius. 
Sextise  (modern  Aix),  and  in  the  following  year  101 


260 


From  Hannibal  to  Cesar 


His  popu- 
larity and 
power 


Optimates 
and  popu- 
lares 


Beesly, 
The  Grac- 
chi, Marius 
and  Sulla, 
p.  14 


he  destroyed  the  invading  Cimbri,  on  a  bloody 
field  in  northern  Italy,  near  modern  Vercellse. 

From  these  great  victories,  Marius  went  back 
to  Rome,  doubly  and  terribly  clothed  with  power, 
by  the  devotion  of  a  reckless  army  and  the  hero- 
worship  of  an  unthinking  mob.  The  state  was  at 
his  mercy.  A  strong  man  in  his  place  might  have 
crushed  the  class-factions  and  accomplished  the 
settlement  which  Caesar  made  after  half  a  century 
more  of  turbulence  and  shame.  But  Marius  was 
ignorant,  he  was  weak,  and  he  became  a  mere 
blood-stained  figure  in  the  ruinous  anarchy  of  his 
time. 

The  social  and  political  state  of  the  capital  had 
grown  worse.  A  middle-class  in  Roman  society 
had  practically  disappeared.  The  two  contending 
parties  or  factions,  which  had  taken  new  names — 
"optimates"  and  "populares" — were  now  divided 
almost  solely  by  the  line  which  separates  rich 
from  poor.  "If  we  said  that  'optimates'  signi- 
fied the  men  who  bribed  and  abused  office  under 
the  banner  of  the  senate  and  its  connections,  and 
that  'populares'  meant  men  who  bribed  and 
abused  office  with  the  interests  of  the  people  out- 
side the  senatorial  pale  upon  their  lips,  we  might 
do  injustice  to  many  good  men  on  both  sides,  but 
should  hardly  be  slandering  the  parties."  There 
was  a  desperate  conflict  between  the  two  in  the 
year  100  B.  C.  and  the  senate  once  more  recovered 
its  power  for  a  brief  term  of  years. 

The  enfranchisement  of  the  so-called  "allies" 
— the  Latin  and  other  subjects  of  Rome  who 


90-88 


Optimates  and  Populares  261 

were  not  citizens — was  the  burning  question  of 
the  time.  The  attempt  of  Gaius  Gracchus  to 
extend  fights  of  citizenship  to  them  had  been 
renewed  again  and  again,  without  success,  and 
each  failure  had  increased  the  bitter  discontent  of  _,    _ 

I  he  Social 

the  Italian  people.     In  90  B.  C.  they  drew  to-  War.  B.C. 
gether  in  a  formidable  confederation  and  rose  in 
revolt.     In  the  face  of  this  great  danger  Rome 
sobered  herself  to  action  with  old  time  wisdom 
and  vigor.     She  yielded  her  full  citizenship  to  all 
Italian  freemen  who  had  not  taken  arms,  and  then 
offered  it  to  those  who  would  lay  their  arms  down. 
At  the  same  time  she  fought  the  insurrection  with 
every  army  she  could  put  into  the  field,  and  in 
two  years  it  was  at  an  end.    Marius  and  his  old 
lieutenant,   Sulla,   had  been  the  principal  com-  Suii 
manders  in  this  "Social  War,"  as  it  was  named,  Lon„ 
and  Sulla  had  distinguished  himself  most.     The  Decline  of 

the  Roman 

latter  had  now  an  army  at  his  back  and  was  a  Republic, 
power  in  the  state,  and  between  the  two  military  ch-xv~xxv 
champions  there  arose  a  rivalry  which  produced 
the  first  of  the  Roman  civil  wars. 

Simultaneously  with  the  revolt  in  Italy,  a  dan- 
gerous new  enemy  was  threatening  Rome  in  the 
east.  What  had  been  the  little  kingdom  of 
Pontus,  part  of  ancient  Cappadocia,  on  the 
southern  shore  of  the  Pontus  Euxine,  had  grown 
suddenly,  or  within  a  score  of  years,  to  a  power 
which  dared  rivalry  with  the  mistress  of  the 
Mediterranean  world.  Along  with  several  other 
principalities  in  Asia  Minor,  it  rose  from  among 
the  fragments  of  the  brief  empire  of  Alexander  to 


Marius  and 
a 


262 


From  Hannibal  to  Cesar 


Mithrida- 
tes,  king  of 
Pontus. 
B.C. 
i32(?)-63 


His  hos- 
tility to 
Rome 


Greek 
revolt 


Rivalry  of 
Marius  and 
Sulla 


an  independence  which  it  maintained  against  his 
struggling  successors,  and  a  Persian  line  of  princes 
held  its  throne.  Most  of  them  bore  the  name  of 
Mithridates;  but  the  name  had  little  distinction 
until  the  sixth  Mithridates  came  on  the  scene. 
At  about  1 12  B.  C,  when  he  had  reached  the  age 
of  twenty,  this  king  of  Pontus  began  a  career  of 
conquest  which  extended  his  dominions  around 
nearly  the  whole  circuit  of  the  Euxine,  before  the 
century  closed.  As  his  power  increased,  so  did 
his  hostility  to  Rome,  and  he  became  the  ally  and 
supporter  of  all  her  foes.  He  had  intrigued  with 
the  rebels  in  Italy;  his  finger  had  been  in  the 
Jugurthine  war;  he  had  worked  on  anti-Roman 
passions  in  Egypt  and  Syria;  and  now  he  insti- 
gated a  desperate  Greek  rising  against  the 
Romans,  beginning  with  a  horrible  massacre  of 
Roman  residents  in  Asia  Minor  and  spreading  to 
Greece.  Rome  had  not  faced  a  situation  so  dan- 
gerous since  Hannibal  was  crushed. 

Both  Marius  and  Sulla  aspired  to  the  command 
in  Greece.  Sulla  obtained  election  to  the  consul- 
ship in  88  B.  C.  and  was  named  for  the  coveted 
place,  but  Marius  succeeded  in  having  the 
appointment  annulled  by  a  popular  assembly  and 
himself  chosen  instead  for  the  eastern  command. 
Sulla,  personally  imperiled  by  popular  tumults, 
fled  to  his  legions,  put  himself  at  their  head,  and 
marched  back  to  Rome — the  first  among  her 
generals  to  turn  her  arms  against  hers-elf.  There 
was  no  effective  resistance;  Marius  fled;  both 
senate  and  people  were  submissive  to  the  dictates 


Marius  and  Sulla  263 

of  the  consul  who  had  become  master  of  the  city. 
He  "made  the  tribes  decree  their  own  political 
extinction,  resuscitating  the  comitia  centuriata; 
he  reorganized  the  senate  by  adding  three  hun- 
dred to  its  members  and  vindicating  the  right  to 
sanction  legislation;  conducted  the  consular 
elections,  exacting  from  L.  Cornelius  Cinna,  the 
newly  elected  consul,  a  solemn  oath  that  he 
would  observe  the  new  regulations,  and  securing 
the  election  of  Cn.  Octavius  in  his  own  interest,  Hhto^'of 
and  then,  like  'a  countryman  who  had  just  shaken  the  Romans, 
the  lice  off  his  coat,'  to  use  his  own  figure,  he 
turned  to  do  his  great  work  in  the  east." 

Sulla  went  to  Greece,  which  was  in  revolt  and 
in  alliance  with  Mithridates,  and  conducted  there 
a  brilliant,  ruthless  campaign  for  three  years,  in 
the  course  of  which  Athens,  taken  by  storm  after 
a  long  siege,  was  more  than  half  destroyed,  and 

Q    IT      * 

most    of    its    inhabitants    were    slain.      Roman  Greece. 
authority  was  restored  in  the  peninsula,  and  the  B- c-  87-U 
king  of  Pontus  was  compelled  to  surrender  all  his 
conquests  in  Asia  Minor.     Until  this  task  was 
finished,  Sulla  gave  no  heed  to  what  his  enemies 
did  at  Rome;   though  the  struggle  there  between 
"Sullans"  and  "Marians"  had  gone  fiercely  and 
bloodily   on,   and    his   own   partisans    had   been 
beaten  in  the  fight.     The  consul  Octavius,  who 
was  in  Sulla's  interest,  had  first  driven  the  consul 
Cinna  out  of  the  city,  after  slaying  10,000  of  his  g^e  °fand 
faction.    Cinna's  cause  was  taken  up  by  the  new  Marians  at 
Italian   citizens;     he   was   joined   by   the   exiled     ome 
Marius,  and  these  two  returned  together,  with  an 


264 


Death  of 
Marius. 
B.  C.  86 


Sulla's 
victorious 
return. 
B.  C.  83-82 


From  Hannibal  to  Oesar 

army  which  the  senate  and  the  party  of  Sulla 
were  unable  to  resist.  Marius  came  back  with  a 
burning  heart  and  with  savage  intentions  of 
revenge.  A  horrible  massacre  of  his  opponents 
ensued,  which  went  on  unchecked  for  five  days, 
and  was  continued  more  deliberately  for  several 
months,  until  Marius  died.  Then  Cinna  ruled 
absolutely  at  Rome  for  three  years,  supported  in 
the  main  by  the  newly-made  citizens;  while  the 
provinces  in  general  remained  under  the  control 
of  the  party  of  the  optimates. 

In  83  B.  C.  Sulla,  having  finished  with  careful- 
ness his  work  in  the  east,  came  back  into  Italy, 
with  40,000  veterans  to  attend  his  steps.  He  had 
been  outlawed  and  deprived  of  his  command,  by 
the  faction  governing  at  the  capital;  but  its 
decrees  had  no  effect  and  troubled  him  little. 
Cinna  had  been  killed  by  his  own  troops,  even 
before  Sulla's  landing  at  Brundisium.  Several 
important  leaders  and  soldiers  on  the  Marian 
side,  such  as  Pompeius  (commonly  called  Pom- 
pey),  then  a  young  general,  and  Crassus,  the 
millionaire,  went  over  to  Sulla's  camp.  One  of 
the  consuls  of  the  year  saw  his  troops  follow  their 
example,  in  a  body;  the  other  consul  was  beaten 
and  driven  into  Capua.  Sulla  wintered  in  Cam- 
pania, and  the  next  spring  he  pressed  forward  to 
Rome,  fighting  a  decisive  battle  with  Marius  the 
younger  on  the  way,  and  took  possession  of  the 
city;  but  not  in  time  to  prevent  a  massacre  of 
senators  by  the  resentful  mob. 

Before  that  year  closed,  the  whole  of  Italy  had 


Sulla's  Dictatorship  265 

been  subdued,  the  final  battle  being  fought  with 
the  Marians  and  Italians  at  the  Colline  Gate,  and 
Sulla  again  possessed  power  supreme.  He  placed 
it  beyond  dispute  by  a  deliberate  extermination 
of  his  opponents,  more  merciless  than  the  Marian 
massacre  had  been.  They  were  proscribed  by  scription  of 
name,  in  placarded  lists,  and  rewards  paid  to  hls  enemies 
those  who  killed  them;  while  their  property  was 
confiscated,  and  became  the  source  of  vast  for- 
tunes to  Sulla's  supporters,  and  of  lands  for 
distribution  to  his  veterans. 

When  this  terror  had  paralyzed  all  resistance  to 
his  rule,  the  Dictator  (for  he  had  taken  that  title) 
undertook  a  complete  reconstruction  of  the  con- 
stitution, aiming  at  a  permanent  restoration  of 
senatorial  ascendancy  and  a  curbing  of  the  powers 
which  the  people,  in  their  assemblies,  and  the 
magistrates  who  especially  represented  them,  had 

gained   during   the   preceding   century.     He   re- 

j  1    1  *       .    t  •  ,  1   Sulla's  die- 

modeled,    moreover,    the    judicial    system,    and  tatorship. 

some    of    his    reforms    were    undoubtedly    good,   B- c-  82"8° 
though    they    did    not   endure.      When    he    had 
fashioned  the  state  to  his  liking,  this  extraor- 
dinary  usurper   abdicated   his   dictatorial   office 
and  retired  to  private  life,  undisturbed  until  his  Biscdea8th* 
death. 

The  system  he  had  established  did  not  save 
Rome  from  renewed  distractions  and  disorder 
after  Sulla  died.  There  was  no  longer  a  practical 
question   between   senate   and   people — between 

1       r  j     1  •  m.  After  Sulla 

the  tew  and  the  many  in  government.    The  ques- 
tion now,  since  the  legionaries  held  their  swords 


266 


From  Hannibal  to  Oesar 


The  game 
for  empire, 
and  the 
players 


Pompey 


Crassus 


Caesar 


Cicero 


Cato  the 
younger 


prepared  to  be  flung  into  the  scale,  was  what  one 
should  again  gather  the  powers  of  government 
into  his  hands,  as  Sulla  had  done. 

The  history  of  the  next  thirty  years — the  last 
generation  of  republican  Rome — is  a  sad  and 
sinister  but  thrilling  chronicle  of  the  strifes  and 
intrigues,  the  machinations  and  corruptions,  of  a 
stupendous  and  wicked  game  in  politics  that  was 
played,  against  one  another  and  against  the 
republic,  by  a  few  daring,  ambitious  players,  with 
the  empire  of  the  civilized  world  for  the  stake 
between  them.  There  were  more  than  a  few 
who  aspired;  there  were  only  three  players  who 
entered  really  as  principals  into  the  game.  These 
were  Pompey,  or  Pompeius,  called  "the  Great," 
since  he  extinguished  the  Marian  faction  in 
Sicily  and  in  Spain;  Crassus,  whose  wealth  gave 
him  power,  and  who  acquired  some  military  pre- 
tensions besides,  by  taking  the  field  against  a 
formidable  insurrection  of  slaves;  and  Julius 
Csesar,  a  young  patrician,  but  nephew  of  Marius 
by  marriage,  who  assiduously  strengthened  that 
connection  with  the  party  of  the  people,  and  who 
began,  very  soon  after  Sulla's  death,  to  draw 
attention  to  himself  as  a  rising  power  in  the 
politics  of  the  day.  There  were  two  other  men, 
Cicero  and  the  younger  Cato,  who  bore  a  nobler 
and  greater  because  less  selfish  part  in  the  contest 
of  that  fateful  time.  Both  were  blind  to  the 
impossibility  of  restoring  the  old  order  of  things, 
with  a  dominant  senate,  a  free  but  well  guided 
populace,  and  a  simply  ordered  social  state;   but 


HMHRI 


w 

v_^ 

2; 

i— i 

rt 

hJ 

o 

ta 

r  i 

0) 

t-< 

H 

C/l 

cfl 

^ 

O 

1— ( 

< 

s** 

CD 

a-i 

< 

C 

O 

C 

QJ 

CTt 

w 

Ph 

u 

0) 

O 

S 

0 

The  Great  Game  for  Empire  267 

their  blindness  was  heroic  and  high-souled. 
Of  the  three  strong  rivals  for  the  vacant  dic- 
tatorial chair  which  waited  to  be  filled,  Pompey 
held  by  far  the  greater  advantages.  His  fame  as 
a  soldier  was  already  won;  he  had  been  a  favorite 
of  fortune  from  the  beginning  of  his  career;  every- 
thing had  succeeded  with  him;  everything  was 
expected  for  him  and  expected  from  him.  Even 
while  the  issues  of  the  great  struggle  were  pend- 
ing, a  wonderful  opportunity  for  increasing  his 
renown  was  opened  to  him.    The  disorders  of  the  _ 

.  .  rompey  in 

civil  war  had  licensed  a  swarm  of  pirates,  who  the  east. 
fairly  possessed  the  eastern  Mediterranean  and  7 

had  nearly  extirpated  the  maritime  trade. 
Pompey  was  sent  against  them,  with  a  commis- 
sion that  gave  him  almost  unlimited  powers,  and 
within  ninety  days  he  had  driven  them  from  the 
sea.  Then,  before  he  had  returned  from  this 
exploit,  he  was  invested  with  supreme  command 
in  the  entire  east,  where  another  troublesome 
war  with  Mithridates  was  going  on.  He  har- 
vested there  all  the  laurels  which  belonged  by 
better  right  to  his  predecessor,  Lucullus,  who  had 
broken  the  power  of  Mithridates. 

Affairs  in  western  Asia 

The  fallen  Mithridates  was  driven  from  his  old 
dominions  into  the  Crimean  kingdom  of  Bos- 
porus, where,  two  years  later,  he  ended  his  life  in 
despair.  From  Pontus,  Pompey  passed  into 
Armenia,  receiving  the  submission  of  its  king,  and 
then  to  Syria,  where  he  extinguished  the  Seleucid 


268 


From  Hannibal  to  Caesar 


End  of  the 
Seleucid 
monarchy. 
B.  C.  64 


Roman 
dominion 
in  the  east 


Pompey  in 
Judea 


monarchy,  removing  the  last  of  its  kings  from  his 
throne.  He  had  received  from  the  Roman  senate 
and  people,  under  an  enactment  called  the 
Manilian  Law,  an  extraordinary  commission, 
investing  him  with  supreme  power  in  Asia,  and  by 
virtue  of  that  authority  he  assumed  to  dispose  of 
eastern  kingdoms  at  will.  Pontus,  Syria,  and  a 
large  part  of  Armenia,  were  added  to  the  domin- 
ion of  Rome,  which  now  took  in  very  nearly  the 
whole  of  Asia  Minor  and  reached  the  Euphrates, 
where  it  came  into  contact  with  a  powerful 
empire,  stretching  from  the  Euphrates  to  the 
Indus,  which  the  kings  of  Parthia  had  built  up. 

In  the  Jewish  kingdom,  at  this  time,  two 
brothers,  of  the  Hasmonean  family,  were  contest- 
ing the  crown,  one  of  them  assisted  by  the  king  of 
the  Nabatseans, — a  neighboring  people,  in  the 
Sinaitic  peninsula,  who,  in  some  unknown  way, 
had  come  into  possession  of  the  region  held  by  the 
Edomites  in  earlier  times.  Pompey  sent  one  of 
his  generals  into  Judea  to  interpose  in  the  strife. 
Both  contestants  attempted  to  buy  his  favor;  he 
gave  it  to  the  one  opposed  by  the  Nabataeans,  and 
ordered  the  latter  to  depart.  Some  months  later, 
Pompey  appeared  in  person,  and  gave  a  hearing 
to  all  parties  concerned,  including  an  embassy 
that  spoke  for  the  people  at  large.  The  latter 
asked  for  the  abolition  of  the  monarchy  and  the 
restoration  of  the  old  constitution  of  government, 
under  the  high  priests.  Pompey  reserved  his 
decision,  and  required  all  parties  to  be  at  peace 
until  he  gave  it;   but  some  movements  occurred 


Pompey  in  Jerusalem  269 

in  the  period  of  waiting  which  gave  him  reasons  R°man. 

.  -  . .  legions  in 

for  advancing  to  Jerusalem  and  demanding  Jerusalem, 
admission  to  the  city.  It  was  surrendered,  and 
his  legions  entered  the  gates,  but  found  a  strong 
war-party  fortified  on  the  temple  mount,  prepared 
to  fight  there  to  the  death.  These  defenders  of 
the  temple  were  overcome  after  a  siege  of  three 
months,  and  12,000  are  said  to  have  been 
slaughtered  when  the  hour  of  victory  came  to  the 
merciless  soldiers  of  Rome. 

Pompey  forced  his  way  into  the  most  holy  place 
of  the  temple,  which  none  but  the  high  priest  had 
ever  entered  before;  but  otherwise  he  left  the 
Jewish  sanctuary  and  its  services  undisturbed. 
The  Hasmonean  monarchy  was  extinguished. 
Hyrcanus,  one  of  the  brothers  whose  rivalry  had  0fXtneHa" 
brought  it  to  an  end,  was  appointed  high  priest  monean 

0  .  .  monarchy. 

and  placed  in  nominal  authority,  as  a  tributary  b.  c.  63 
vassal  of  Rome.  At  the  same  time,  important 
parts  of  the  Jewish  territory  were  taken  from  his 
jurisdiction  and  added  to  the  Roman  province  of 
Syria,  lately  formed.  Hyrcanus  proved  soon  to 
be  a  mere  puppet  in  the  hands  of  an  able  minister,  ^ntipat 
Antipater,  called  the  Idumean,  who  took  the 
reins  of  government  into  his  own  hands. 

Egypt  was  now  the  only  Mediterranean  state 
left  outside  of  the  all-absorbing  dominion  of 
Rome;  and  the  monarchy  of  the  Ptolemies 
existed  only  because  Roman  policy,  for  some  Egypt 
reason,  postponed  its  fate.  It  had  no  independ- 
ence in  any  matter  on  which  Rome  chose  to  issue 
a  command.    For  a  century  past,  its  history  had 


er 


270 


From  Hannibal  to  Oesar 


Pompey's 
position 


been  little  more  than  a  chronicle  of  the  foul  vices 
and  crimes  of  its  royal  family  and  their  corrupted 
court.  One  of  the  recent  kings — there  is  uncer- 
tainty which  one  of  two  or  three — was  alleged  to 
have  bequeathed  his  kingdom  to  the  Roman 
republic,  which  might  at  any  time  give  orders  for 
taking  possession  of  the  bequest. 

Last  Years  of  the  Roman  Republic 

Pompey  came  back  to  Rome  in  the  spring  of  61 
B.  C.  so  glorified  by  his  successes  that  he  might 
have  seemed  to  be  irresistible,  whatever  he  should 
undertake.  But  either  an  honest  patriotism  or  an 
overweening  confidence  had  led  him  to  disband 
his  army  when  he  reached  Italy,  and  he  had  com- 
mitted himself  to  no  party.  He  stood  alone  and 
aloof,  with  a  great  prestige,  great  ambitions,  and 
no  ability  to  use  the  one  or  realize  the  other. 
Before  another  year  passed,  he  was  glad  to  accept 
offers  of  a  helping  hand  in  politics  from  Caesar, 
who  had  climbed  the  ladder  of  office  rapidly 
within  four  or  five  years,  spending  vast  sums  of 
borrowed  money  to  amuse  the  people  with  games, 
and  distinguishing  himself  as  a  democratic  cham- 
pion. Caesar,  the  far  seeing  calculator,  discerned 
the  enormous  advantages  that  he  might  gain  for 
himself  by  massing  together  the  prestige  of  Pom- 
B.  c.  60-53  pey,  the  wealth  of  Crassus,  and  his  own  invincible 
genius,  which  was  sure  to  be  the  master  element  in 
theleague.  Hebrought  thecoalitionabout through 
a  bargain  which  created  what  is  known  in  history 
as  the  First  Triumvirate,  or  supremacy  of  three. 


The  First 
Trium- 
virate. 


Fowler, 
Julius 
Cczsar,  ch 
vi-vii 


Oesar's  Conquest  of  Gaul  271 

Under  the  terms  of  the  bargain,  Caesar  was 
chosen  consul  for  59  B.  C,  and  at  the  end  of  his 
term  was  given  the  governorship  of  Cisalpine  and 
Transalpine  Gaul,  with  command  of  three  legions  g^ui*1"1 
there,  for  five  years.  His  grand  aim  was  a  mili-  B-c-53-50 
tary  command — the  leadership  of  an  army — the 
prestige  of  a  successful  soldier.  No  sooner  had  he 
secured  the  command  than  fortune  gave  him 
opportunities  for  its  use  in  a  striking  way  and 
with  impressive  results. 

Cisalpine  Gaul  (northern  Italy)  had  been  sub- 
jugated and  was  tranquil;  Transalpine  Gaul 
(Gaul  west  and  north  of  the  Alps,  or  modern 
France,  Switzerland,  and  Belgium)  was  troubled 
and  threatening.  In  Transalpine  Gaul  the 
Romans  had  made  no  conquests  beyond  the 
Rhone,  as  yet,  except  along  the  coast  at  the 
south.  The  country  between  the  Alps  and  the 
Rhone,  excepting  certain  territories  of  Massilia  1irans"      , 

'  .  .  .  alpine  Gaul 

(Marseilles)  which  still  continued  to  be  a  free 
city,  in  alliance  with  Rome,  had  been  appro- 
priated and  organized  as  a  province — the  Pro- 
vence of  later  times.  The  territory  between  the 
Rhone  and  the  Cevennes  mountains  was  not  so 
fully  occupied  and  controlled. 

Caesar's  first  proceeding  as  proconsul  in  Gaul 
was  to  arrest  the  migration  of  a  tribe  called  the 
Helvetii,  who  had  determined  to  abandon  their 
Swiss  valleys  and  to  seize  some  new  territory  in 
Gaul.  He  blocked  their  passage  through  Roman 
Gaul,  then  followed  them  in  their  movement 
eastward  of  the  Rhone,  attacked  and  defeated 


272 


From  Hannibal  to  Oesar 


Caesar's 

subjuga- 
tion of  the 
Gallic 
tribes 

B.  C.  58 


B.  C.  57 


B.  C.  56 


Caesar, 
The  Gallic 
War 


Caesar's 
invasions  of 
Britain. 
B.  C.  SS-S4 


Gallic 

revolts 


them  with  great  slaughter,  and  forced  the  small 
remnant  to  return  to  their  deserted  mountain 
homes.  The  same  year  he  drove  out  of  Gaul  a 
formidable  body  of  Suevic  Germans  who  had 
crossed  the  Rhine  some  years  before,  under 
Ariovistus,  their  king.  The  next  year  he  reduced 
to  submission  the  powerful  tribes  of  the  Belgian 
region,  who  had  provoked  attack  by  leaguing 
themselves  against  the  Roman  intrusion  in  Gaul. 
The  most  obstinate  of  those  tribes — the  Nervii — 
were  destroyed.  In  the  following  year  Caesar 
attacked  and  nearly  exterminated  the  Veneti,  a 
remarkable  maritime  people,  who  occupied  part 
of  Armorica  (modern  Brittany) ;  he  also  reduced 
the  coast  tribes  northwards  to  submission,  while 
one  of  his  lieutenants  made  a  conquest  of  Aqui- 
tania. 

The  conquest  of  Gaul  was  now  apparently 
complete,  and  next  year,  after  routing  and  cutting 
to  pieces  another  horde  of  Germanic  invaders 
who  had  ventured  across  the  lower  Rhine,  Caesar 
traversed  the  channel  and  invaded  Britain.  This 
first  invasion,  which  had  been  little  more  than  a 
reconnoissance,  was  repeated  the  year  following 
with  a  larger  force.  It  was  an  expedition  having 
small  results,  and  Caesar  returned  from  it  in  the 
early  autumn,  to  find  his  power  in  Gaul  under- 
mined everywhere  by  rebellious  plots.  For 
nearly  three  years  he  was  occupied  in  crushing 
the  revolts,  which  he  did  with  an  energy,  a  daring, 
a  celerity  of  movement,  an  unerring  aim  in  every 
stroke,  that  have  rarely  been  equaled  in  the  whole 


Politics  at  Rome  273 

history  of  war.  All  soldiers  have  admired  the 
Gallic  campaigns  of  Caesar;  all  humane  persons 
have  shuddered  at  the  ruthlessness  with  which  he 
accomplished  his  purpose,  of  breaking  the  inde- 
pendent spirit  of  a  noble  race.     He  had  finished  „     , 

■  -r»/^TTii  Results  of 

his  work  in  the  year  51  B.  C.  He  had  pushed  the  Caesar's 
frontiers  of  the  dominion  of  Rome  to  the  ocean  camPaisns 
and  the  Rhine,  and  had  threatened  the  nations  of 
Germany  on  the  northern  banks  of  that  stream. 
"The  conquest  of  Gaul  by  Caesar,"  says  Mr. 
Freeman,  "is  one  of  the  most  important  events  in 
the  history  of  the  world.  It  is  in  some  sort  the 
beginning  of  modern  history,  as  it  brought  the  old 
world  of  southern  Europe,  of  which  Rome  was  the 
head,  into  contact  with  the  lands  and  nations 
which  were  to  play  the  greatest  part  in  later 
times — with  Gaul,  Germany,  and  Britain." 

Meantime,  while  pursuing  a  career  of  conquest 
which  excited  the  Roman  world,  Caesar  never  lost 
touch  with  the  capital  and  its  seething  politics. 
Each  winter  he  repaired  to  Lucca,  the  point  in  his 
province  that  was  nearest  to  Rome,  and  conferred  politics  at 
there  with  his  friends,  who  flocked  to  the  ren-  Rome 
dezvous.  He  secured  an  extension  of  his  term,  to 
enable  him  to  complete  his  plans,  and  year  by 
year  he  grew  more  independent  of  the  support  of 
his  colleagues  in  the  triumvirate,  while  they 
weakened  one  another  by  their  jealousies,  and  the 
Roman  state  was  more  hopelessly  distracted  by 
factious  strife.  _,    ,    , 

Death  of 

The    year    after    Caesar's    second    invasion    of  Crassus. 
Britain,  Crassus,  who  had  obtained  the  govern- 


274 


From  Hannibal  to  Cjesar 


Pompey 
with  the 
Optimates 


Civil  war. 
B.  C.  so 


\Iommsen, 
History  of 
Rome,  bk.  5 


Crossing 

the 

Rubicon 


ment  of  Syria,  perished  in  a  disastrous  war  with 
the  Parthians,  who  now  possessed  nearly  the 
whole  territory  of  the  old  Persian  empire,  except- 
ing in  Asia  Minor  and  Syria.  The  triumvirate 
was  at  an  end.  Disorder  in  Rome  increased  and 
Pompey  lacked  energy  or  boldness  to  deal  with  it, 
though  he  seemed  to  be  the  one  man  present  who 
might  do  so.  He  was  made  sole  consul  in  52 
B.  C;  he  might  have  seized  the  dicta torship? 
with  approval  of  many,  but  he  waited  for  it  to  be 
offered  to  him,  and  the  offer  never  came.  He 
drew  at  last  into  close  alliance  with  the  party  of 
the  Optimates,  and  left  the  Populares  to  be  won 
entirely  to  Caesar's  side. 

Ma cters  came  to  a  crisis  in  50  B.  C,  when  the 
senate  passed  an  order  removing  Caesar  from  his 
command  and  discharging  his  soldiers  who  had 
served  their  term.  He  came  to  Ravenna  with  a 
single  legion  and  concerted  measures  with  his 
friends.  The  issue  involved  is  supposed  to  have 
been  one  of  life  or  death  to  him,  as  well  as  of 
triumph  or  failure  in  his  ambitions;  for  his 
enemies  were  malignant.  His  friends  demanded 
that  he  be  made  consul,  for  his  protection,  before 
laying  down  his  arms.  The  senate  answered  by 
proclaiming  him  a  public  enemy  if  he  failed  to 
disband  his  troops  with  no  delay.  It  was  a 
declaration  of  war,  and  Caesar  accepted  it.  He 
marched  his  single  legion  across  the  Rubicon, 
which  was  the  boundary  of  his  province,  and 
advanced  towards  Rome. 

Pompey,   with    the   forces   he   had   gathered, 


Oesar's  Triumph  275 

^treated  southward,  and  consuls,  senators  and 
nobles  generally  streamed  after  him.  Caesar  fol- 
lowed them — turning  aside  from  the  city — and 
his  force  gathered  numbers  as  he  advanced.  The 
Pompeians  continued  their  flight  and  abandoned 
Italy,  withdrawing  to  Epirus,  planning  to  gather 
there  the  forces  of  the  east  and  return.     Caesar  Flights  of 

the 

now  took  possession  of  Rome  and  secured  the  p0mPeians 
islands  of  Sicily  and  Sardinia,  from  which  it  drew 
its  supply  of  food.  This  done,  he  proceeded 
without  delay  to  Spain,  where  seven  legions 
devoted  to  Pompey  were  stationed.  He  over- 
came them  in  a  single  campaign,  enlisted  most  of 
the  veterans  in  his  own  service,  and  acquired  a 
store  of  treasure. 

Before  the  year  ended,   Caesar  was   again  in 
Rome,  where  the  citizens  had  proclaimed  him 
dictator.     He   held   the   dictatorship   for  eleven 
days,  only,  to  legalize  an  election  which  made  J^and 
him  consul,  with  a  pliant  associate.     He  reor-  consul 
ganized    the    government,    complete    in    all    its 
branches,  including  a  senate,  composed  partly  of 
former  members  of  the  body  who  had  remained  or 
returned.    Then  he  took  up  the  pursuit  of  Pom- 
pey and  the  Optimates.    Crossing  to  Epirus,  after  Pharsaiia. 
some  months  of  changeful  fortune,  he  fought  and 
won  the  decisive  battle  of  Pharsaiia.     Pompey, 
flying  to  Egypt,  was  murdered  there.     Caesar,  pompey 
following,  with  a  small  force,  was  placed  in  great 
peril   by   a    rising   at  Alexandria,    but   held   his 
ground  till  assistance  came.    He  then  garrisoned 
Egypt  with  Roman  troops  and  made  the  princess 


276  From  Hannibal  to  Cjesar 

Cleopatra,  who  had  captivated  him  by  her 
charms,  joint  occupant  of  the  throne  with  her 
younger  brother. 

During  his  absence,  affairs  at  Rome  were  again 
disturbed,  and  when  he  returned  he  was  reap- 
pointed dictator,  as  well  as  tribune  for  life.  His 
presence  restored  order  at  once,  and  he  was  soon 
Battle  of  -n  readiness  to  attack  a  party  of  his  enemies  who 
B.  cS46  had  taken  refuge  in  Africa.  The  battle  of  Thap- 
sus,  followed  by  the  suicide  of  Cato  and  the  sur- 
render of  Utica,  practically  finished  the  contest, 
though  one  more  campaign  was  fought  in  Spain 
the  following  year. 

Qesar  was  now  master  of  the  dominions  of 

Rome,  and  as  entirely  a  monarch  as  any  one  of 

his  imperial  successors,  who  took  his  name,  with 

the  power  which  he  caused  it  to  symbolize,  and 

called  themselves  "csesars,"  and  "imperators,"  as 

fmperator    though  the  two  titles  were  equivalent.    "Impera- 

tor"  was  the  title  under  which  he  chose  to  exer- 

Merivak,     c;se  njs  sovereignty.    Other  Roman  generals  had 

theRovmns  been  imperators  before,  but  he  was  the  first  to  be 

itpirT      named  imperator  for  life,  and  the  word  (changed 

ch.xk-x'xi     in  our  tongue  to  emperor)  took  a  meaning  from 

that  day  more  regal  than  Rex  or  King.     That 

Cesar,  the  imperator,  first  of  all  emperors,  ever 

coveted  the  crown  and  title  of  an  older-fashioned 

royalty,  is  not  an  easy  thing  to  believe. 

Having  settled  his  authority  firmly,  he  gave 
Reorganiz-    ^    attention  to  the  organization  of  the  empire 

ation  ot  \  1  1  r  •  r 

Roman        (still  republic  in  name)  and  to  the  reforming  ot 
LTr"       the  evils  which  afflicted  it.    That  he  did  this  work 


Assassination  of  Oesar  277 

with  consummate  judgment  and  success  is  the 
opinion  of  all  who  study  his  time.  He  gratified 
no  resentments,  executed  no  revenges,  proscribed 
no  enemies.  All  who  submitted  to  his  rule  were 
safe;  and  it  seems  to  be  clear  that  the  people  in 
general  were  glad  to  be  rescued  by  his  rule  from 
the  old  oligarchical  and  anarchical  state.  But 
some  of  Caesar's  own  partisans  were  dissatisfied 
with  the  autocracy  which  they  helped  to  create,  or 
with  the  slenderness  of  their  own  parts  in  it.  They 

.     .  1  r    1       r\       •  Assassina- 

conspired  with  surviving  leaders  of  the  Optimates,  tion  of 
and    Caesar  was   assassinated   by   them,    in   the  b.  c.  44 
senate  chamber,  on  the  15th  of  March,  B.  C.  44. 

China 

The  opening  of  the  period  surveyed  in  this 
chapter  coincides  with  the  founding  of  one  of  the 
most  important  of  the  Chinese  dynasties,  namely 
that  called  the  Han,  which  acquired  the  imperial 
throne  in  202  B.  C,  and  occupied  it  for  more  than  dy^as^ 
four  hundred  years.    The  founder  of  the  dynasty  B.  c.  202- 

A.  D. 220 

is  credited  with  the  institution  of  the  system  of 
competitive  examinations  for  public  office,  which 
has  prevailed  through  twenty  centuries,  and 
which  seems  to  have  acted  upon  society  and 
government   with   a   peculiarly   moulding  force.  ComPet>- 

o  r  j  o  tIve  exam- 

It  is  due  to  that  system,  without  doubt,  that  no  ination 

hereditary  nobility  has  arisen  among  the  Chinese;  syb 

that  literature  and  learning,  of  a  kind,  have  been 

honored  among  them  as  among  no  other  peoples; 

and  that  the  kind  of  learning  and  literature  so 

valued   and   respected   has  become   convention- 


278  From  Hannibal  to  Oesar 

alized  and  valueless  to  an  unexampled  degree. 
The  despotism  established  by  Hwangti  was 
relaxed  by  the  Han  emperors  without  weakening 
their  authority.  Freedom  to  criticise  the  govern- 
ment, which  Hwangti  had  suppressed,  was 
restored  by  a  wiser  sovereign,  who  said  that  he 
needed  it  to  give  him  information  of  the  true 
mind  of  his  people.  Under  Vouti,  the  ablest  and 
strongest  of  the  Han  dynasty,  the  never  ceasing 
warfare  of  the  Chinese  with  their  Mongolian 
neighbors  was  waged  with  unusual  success. 
Vouti  is  recognized  as  having  established  and 
consolidated  the  Han  dynasty,  and  given  it  such 
Bouiger,       an  importance  in  the  history  of  the  empire  that 

History  0/  *  1111  -11       1 

China,  1:88  the  Chinese     are  now,  and  probably  will  always 
be,  proud  to  style  themselves  'the  sons  of  Han.'" 


Vouti 


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